Get to know about our mentor Vaibhav Bhasin, the Design Head - Mobility at Gojek. Vaibhav is an expert in Product Design, UX Design, and Growth Design.
How did you get started with your career in Mobility Design?
I've actually spent most of my career moving "things" around. My first gig was a grocery delivery startup. Then, I worked in a B2B Logistics startup where we moved all sorts of things & finally here in Gojek, I got a chance to add "People" to that list too. I joined Gojek because of the amazing culture they have.
Before this I had mostly worked in small teams where there weren't many senior designers to guide me, unlike Gojek where i got so many people to look up to and learn from & the best part is the environment which motivates and enables people to take up more responsibility and makes them feel safe to make mistakes.
Why did you decide to mentor on ADPList?
I've been in and around the concept of mentoring all my life. Used to help out my friends with studies, introduced a lot of people in my college to design and watching them get good scores or create something great, felt amazing.But my first elaborate experience in mentorship happened when I hired an intern here at Gojek. The entire journey of guiding them, helping them overcome obstacles, challenging them to perform at their best and then finally seeing them succeed, was addictive.Safe to say that it's the part of my job that I enjoy the most.
I came across ADPList on a LinkedIn post in 2020, reading the heartwarming experiences of the mentees and the kind of supportive relationships which the platform promotes. I wanted to do my bit to contribute as well.Mentoring on ADPList has been such a rewarding experience for me so far. Along with the opportunity to guide budding designers, this process has helped me reflect and improve my skills to be a better manager for my team. Not to mention being a small part of someone's joy when they land their dream job. Priceless.
What is your favourite Mentoring story so far?
There are a lot of them, some joyful, some emotional and some just where I ended up learning as much as the mentee. But i'll talk about the one which specifically stands out for me and motivates me to keep putting in these extra hours. There was this young designer who I was helping move into a more design focused company. We had in depth discussions about how to approach problems, understanding user emotions, storytelling and so much more.
In just a few sessions he was able to land a job at one of the top product startups in India, and that's not even the best part. This is my favourite story because that designer is now trying to help other designers by writing about his experiences, helping them move into design and guiding them along the way. It's so heartwarming to see the chain-reaction our actions set off .
What is the best advice you can give to a mentee?
Each person is different and there's no one size fit all advice. But one thing which I feel is very important and probably ignored by a lot of mentee's is their relationship with the mentor. Mentorship has much more to offer than answers to questions you'll easily find all over the internet. To truly get value out of it, you firstly need to establish a relationship where both of you trust each other, are comfortable with vulnerability and express thoughts openly.Don't think of it as a 30 min session to solve all your problems.
Think of it as a start of a long fruitful relationship which both the parties have to nurture and support.So introduce yourself, talk about your dreams, your aspirations, what motivates you, understand each other and then move over to the challenges you need help with.You'd be surprised by how much of a difference it makes. The best mentors I've had in my life are people who now I consider a friend, & it's the same dynamic which I try to establish with my mentees.
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