With support from his mentor, Rondell has overcome the communication barriers that were holding him back, seizing every opportunity to practise his newfound skills.

Although comfortable and chatty with his friends, 17-year-old Rondell used to find himself tongue-tied when speaking in public. Nervous and hesitant, he struggled to start conversations or make presentations, and would also back down at once if interrupted or contradicted.

With tips, practice and encouragement, the Me To We mentoring programme has supported Rondell to find his voice, make his case and hold his ground. Stepping beyond his comfort zone, he is now honing his emerging communication and leadership skills as the public relations officer for his school student council.

‘Before, I used to be nervous… I’d be stuttering and trying to figure out exactly what to say and I would have been confused and all over the place,’ Rondell explains.

‘My mentor taught me how to navigate people situations, how to think and how to actually speak to someone and have a conversation’.

Breaking down barriers

The Me To We mentoring programme, delivered by our partner the Volunteer Center of Trinidad and Tobago, has been generously funded by The Proman Foundation for the last three years. The programme provides weekly mentor sessions for young people at risk of underachieving, supporting them to recognise and reach their potential.

Rondell’s mentor helped him to break down his fears around public speaking, work out strategies to manage his nerves and express himself clearly, and challenge his perception that people would respond negatively. The programme also gave him plenty of practice speaking and interacting with lots of different people.

‘The benefit of the programme for me has been the people skills development, I have seen dramatic growth with it,’ Rondell explains, highlighting how he is now more comfortable speaking up and standing his ground – asserting himself respectfully.

‘Before, if I had to speak and someone would interrupt me or say that I was wrong, and they shut me down, I’d just say oh okay and sit down and let them say what they have to say. But now… I will say you can’t just shut somebody down, at least let the person talk. I would say I’ve become more outgoing and outspoken.’

Taking the next step

Keen to practise his developing skills, Rondell jumped at the chance to become public relations officer for his student council. ‘I was appointed PRO and I was like okay perfect timing,’ Rondell recalls, ‘The position I’m in is about planning events and I have to speak in front of people.’

While Rondell says that his communication skills have been his biggest area of growth, the part of the programme that he most enjoyed was the career planning work he and his mentor undertook together, empowering him to identify his career goals and break them down into manageable steps that he can actively work towards.

One day, Rondell hopes to set up his own accountancy business. In the meantime, he is focused on achieving the grades he needs for the next stage of his studies – while continuing to actively build his skills.

Keen to seize every opportunity to practise, and to give back to the programme that helped him, Rondell stepped up to give a speech at the public launch event for the 2026/27 Me To We programme, sharing his journey with the new intake of mentees, along with mentors and supporters.