A good career mentor will be honest about your strengths and shortcomings, celebrate the little victories and help you find your way into the professional world.You want someone who encourages your passions and steers you toward them. It can be tricky to get started, so we’ve compiled a few tips.
Before you start looking, do a little soul searching and figure out what you want. What are your end goals? What are you exceedingly good at and what could use some improvement? Once you pinpoint your ultimate expectations, it will be much easier to find someone who possesses the right skills.
Finding a career mentor can take a bit of detective work, but generally someone within the field or company you are working toward makes the most sense. Get to know their work and think about what draws you to them. Don’t approach a complete stranger; find someone who is both professional and personal.
Although they might be the closest to your prospective career, think beyond bosses and professors. Look to family members or friends you admire professionally. Find neighbors, spiritual leaders and community leaders you look up to. Look into the networks of your colleagues and the associations you belong to.
Sometimes the busiest people are the most in-demand mentors, so make sure to get your elevator pitch down to perfection. Seriously, it’s important to be able to say who you are, what you’re looking for and why they should care in two minutes or less. Be concise, calm, confident and make yourself stand out. Don’t be scared of flattery—intelligent compliments can go a long way, especially in the business world.
Not one person is going to give you everything you need. It can be really helpful to have more than one mentor. If your direct supervisor from work is your mentor, for instance, it could get a little awkward when you want to talk about future advancement or specialization in another area. Creating a top-notch team of advisers with a variety of expertise is the best way to get well-rounded advice and guidance.
It’s important to understand that mentoring can take many forms. It can be a monthly lunch, a quarterly FaceTime, a weekly meeting or merely a steady e-mail correspondence. Your mentor does not even have to live in your city or region. Makes things easier, huh?
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