These are just some of the 26 amazing women who have signed up to be a Marie Claire mentor this year. With high-profile women from the

worlds of film, fashion, beauty, publishing and interiors on hand to help you, this could be the year you finally nail that dream career.

Marie Claire’s mentors for 2011

Inspiring Women

Fiona Levey, 22, is a budding theatre director and producer. Her mentor was Sally Greene, 48, owner and chief executive of The Old Vic.‘I desperately want to break into London theatre and was thinking of just going for admin jobs, but Sally encouraged me to think big and apply for assistant director or trainee producer roles. Having her backing gave me the confidence to apply for jobs I’d thought were out of my league.’Three things I’ve learnedn ‘Make the most of networking opportunities.’n ‘Aim high. Apply for jobs that might seem out of reach. Just sound confident about the experience you already have.’n ‘Even if ultimately you want a job in a big London theatre, regional experience counts for a lot. Be open to moving to another city if the right role emerges.’ Sally says ‘I’ve always believed in mentoring – this industry relies on people helping the next generation along – so I arranged for Fiona to shadow staff working on Billy Elliott The Musical, my film company Green Light and The Old Vic.’

‘My mentor gave me the confidence to think big’ ‘My mentor gave

me direction’Kat Anderson, 28, is an aspiring jewellery designer. Her mentor was Marcia Kilgore, 42, founder of Bliss spas and Soap & Glory.‘Marcia’s approach is about seeing the bigger picture – it’s all very well being creative, but she taught me that you need to engage your business brain, too; otherwise, you’re just a hobbyist. She was crucial in helping me think about myself as a brand. Now, when I’m making designs it’s not just conceptual; I’m thinking, “How am I going to sell this to someone?”’ Three things I’ve learnedn ‘Work out what makes your brand unique.’ n ‘If someone says no, keep going back to them.’ n ‘Think about who you are selling to.’

Marcia says ‘I get a lot of young girls coming to me for advice and I always ask them the same thing: what are you trying to achieve? Do you want to make lots of money or just make beauti-ful things, or both? That’s the first thing I asked Kat and I hope I helped her work that out.’

Lorraine Pascale The Model-Turned-

Cupcake-Queen Lisa Stickley The Interiors

Guru

Thea Green The Nail -Bar Phenomenon

Storme Whitby-Grubb The Music Tour

Manager

Do you want to be mentored? To apply, go to marieclaire.co.uk/inspire andmentor