Nicky Stevenson, MD of Fine & Country, has agreed to become an Agents Together Mentor.

Agents Together, a non-profit organisation, has over one hundred mentors who freely give up their time and share their experiences to help those who are new to the industry progress in their careers.

Stevenson commented: “I am very grateful to have had people in my career that I would class as mentors, people that have shaped and helped my career to develop over the past 17 years in the property industry. So, when Sarah Edmundson, CEO of Agents Together, discussed with me the mentorship scheme, it was something that I jumped at the chance to do; to give back to others in an industry I love.”

Stevenson became an estate agent after completing her GCSE’s at 16 years old. Her first role was as a negotiator for Davis Tate estate agents in Reading.

She added: “My manager was a young woman named Claire, who was an inspiration to me. She was a very supportive boss who encouraged me to achieve things I may not have thought possible.

“The founder of the business, David Tate, is another person I would consider a mentor and someone I have kept in touch with throughout my career. When Fine & Country approached me, he was one of the people I discussed the matter with as a supportive figure, adviser, and mentor.

“Estate agency coach, Peter Knight who founded the Property Academy, was also an amazing influence and mentor in my career. All of these people have played a vital role in helping me to get to where I am in my career and being a mentor to someone else coming up the ranks is a huge honour.”

Stevenson adds that one of the best lessons she has learned from her mentors is to have self-belief even when you don’t necessarily feel confident.

She continued: “When I was a negotiator, my boss wanted me to become a manager and encouraged me to take that next step, even though I didn’t think I was capable of it at the time. There are a lot more examples of times when a mentor has encouraged me to step out of my comfort zone and push myself in my career because they believed in me and what I was capable of, even when I wasn’t sure. It is that encouragement and belief that has kept me moving forward.

“As a mentor, I want to be available as a sounding board and a support for my mentee to be able to talk things through. Hopefully, I will also be able to inspire and encourage them to achieve things they might not have thought they could, helping to instil both confidence and a positive mind set. There is also the aspect of accountability, if that is something the mentee wants from the relationship.”

With a number of young women registering with Agents Together as mentees, Stevenson hopes to be able to help them progress their career within the property sector.

Stevenson continues that it is important for younger women coming into a male-dominated industry to have female role models.

She added: “Hopefully, the mentor programme will result in more women breaking into the upper ranks of the industry in the future.”

she adds. “I am proud to be a part of the programme and look forward to seeing its growth in future.”