By Rachel Marks, The Mars Agency
The job search process is never easy and it’s made even harder by language and cultural barriers. With support from The Mars Agency’s Start Small initiative, Nidhi Mehra, Account Manager on the Walmart Connect team based in Toronto, set out on a “Martian Mission” to use social media for good by creating content that provides career advice to individuals who have immigrated to Canada and are navigating the process.
Despite moving to Canada from India in 2018 with a decade of experience in her field, it still took Nidhi 3 years to get back on her desired career path. Not wanting other people to struggle with the job search in similar ways, she took matters into her own hands. Nidhi began volunteering at settlement agencies like ACCES Employment, Woodgreen Services, and Achēv, working with peers and guiding them through the process.
To reach a wider audience, Nidhi began making videos to share her experiences and advice with others. While there are many guides available on pursuing careers, she found a lack of information for people in her situation, so she set out to fill that gap. Twice a week, Nidhi shares a video on her LinkedIn page, tackling a new topic to help folks understand Canadian, and Western, job search culture. With topics ranging from resume tips to cultural differences and varying communication styles, Nidhi’s on a mission to make sure immigrants have the insights and guidance to successfully maneuver through the process.
https://video.wixstatic.com/video/a97a53_76c745d72d4f434697ad1c220e7b0bbc/480p/mp4/file.mp4
However, she didn’t start making videos out of nowhere. Last December, Nidhi was invited onto the Peer Success Stories Panel with AdClub Toronto, where she shared her story for the first time. The virtual attendees tuning in from across Canada included recent grads, students, industry professionals, and community members looking for a career in the Canadian advertising, marketing, and media industry.
“Prior to that, I was hesitant and ashamed,” said Nidhi. “It’s only when I saw responses from the audience during the panel that I was encouraged to put my most vulnerable self out there.” Invigorated by the response, she gained the confidence to share her story more broadly. And now, her videos have been watched over 200 hours.
For people who’d like to support Nidhi’s mission, check out her videos on LinkedIn and help share her guides and insights so she can continue to reach new audiences.
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At The Mars Agency, our mission is to make a positive impact across a “Triple Bottom Line” that seeks growth for our clients, growth for our people, and growth for our community.
To support the many communities in which we operate, we created the Start Small volunteering initiative. Our goal is to gain 100% employee participation in at least one of the program’s four pillars:
- Quarterly events hosted by our local offices;
- Global Citizenship Day, an agency-wide day dedicated to volunteering in our communities;
- Individual personal volunteer days;
- Martian Missions, in which employees like Nidhi receive up to 160 hours of time to immerse themselves in a cause of their choice.