How do you develop and maintain a network of mentors, coaches, and sponsors for your leadership growth?

The idea that coaches are "experts" might be a bit misleading - or setting up the client to rely too much on someone for advice. Coaches are most certainly experts in the PROCESS of partnering with clients to identify goals, anticipate obstacles, and create a path forward. Much of my work with clients - internally or externally - is about getting the client to open up and share ideas and beliefs to discern the next best action to take. As a coach, I resist the urge to offer advice. Clients can & are - powerful + resourceful. This is my belief. (I also realize I might not be the best coach if someone is just looking for advice. That is a mentor or consultant. I can wear the hat of consultant-this isn't my go-to "hat" to start with.)

A coach is different from an advisor, mentor or sponsor. A good coach offers a combination of challenge and support; offers you thought partnership, does NOT give you the answer but rather helps you explore your questions more deeply, as well as learn how to find your own answers whenever possible. Coaches are not typically advisors (i.e. the "expert") and clients are well served to be clear about what they are looking for since a coach's primary responsibility is to help the client learn and grow.

I agree with the sentiment on the distinction between coaching, mentoring and other support. The coaching relationship is one of partnership that enables the client's internal resources to become readily accessible.

Jeff, the framing of “expert,” caught my attention as well given how many professionals frame their practice; while they do have Expertise,” helping other navigate the discovery, learning, can change process; they generally do not see themselves as content experts!

Mentors are internal organizational or professional guides that share their experiences and offer advice on how the mentor would recommend a mentee navigate challenges. Mentors make introductions to other helpful people within their network to advance the career goals of their mentee. Certified coaches are external to organizations and have an equal peer relationship with coachees. Coachees direct the course of the coaching support. Coaches believe in coaching clients’ capabilities to learn, grow, and change in the ways coachees aspire and encourage, support, and provide positive accountability to clients so. Coaches rarely offer advice from their experiences and ask for the client’s prior permission before sharing advice or insights.

Whether with a mentor or a coach, chemistry is important. At the heart of a successful engagement is a successful, productive and functional relationship.

Choosing the right professional for your needs might take some shopping around before you find the one(s) with whom you want to work. Referrals are great, though what works for one person might not work for another. Everyone's needs are unique. Ask yourself what is most important to YOU in a coach, mentor, or sponsor. For example, all my coaches, mentors, and sponsors believe they can learn as much from me as I from them. Each one is “always a student.” I seek people constantly looking to grow and evolve themselves. Authenticity and integrity are also critical to my choices. What is critical for you? Forcing a relationship with someone incompatible with you is unlikely to yield the results you want to achieve.

Coaches can also be located through Google search for coaches under the categories of executive coach, business coach, or life coach.

Make sure to look for mentors/coaches both inside and outside your organization. They will provide completely different perspectives. Those inside can help you navigate internal politics, networks, and procedures, but they probably care more about you sticking around. Those outside (most often paid coaches) care only about your success in the big picture, and where you need to develop to achieve your biggest goals. Both are helpful in different ways!

Coaching fit is critical! Many coaches, myself included, offer/require a complimentary session to ensure a good fit for both the coach and client.

In my experience, building a network of trusted professional advisors takes a few key elements. One, you need to have enough vulnerability to entrust others with the right to give you hard truths and perceptions about yourself. Two, you need to have enough vulnerability with yourself to actually take those truths and perceptions to heart, as well as taking action on them. Three, you can’t wait for someone to take on these roles for you… you have to ask or seek out their service. Four, make sure the people filling these roles can speak to your level and above.

Try ASKING them what they like to see from a client/need in order to feel valued and appreciated! Also, remember that different people have different needs and you are much better off asking than guessing what those are :-)

Cultivating relationships with coaches differs from mentors and sponsors. Mentors and sponsors give you their time, effort, and trust, but they gain something in return. It might not be monetary, but "paying it forward" by helping others, gaining valuable experience that can help them professionally, or promoting talent within their organizations do benefit them. While coaching can be for similar reasons, depending on who is delivering it and its purpose. Internal company coaching is often about optimizing your performance as an individual and team member, not necessarily addressing your unique needs as a person. Your ability to choose and cultivate an internal coaching relationship could be limited.

Mentors play pivotal roles in a young person's professional development. They guide and share the business life lessons on which a successful career is based. However, it's up to the next generation of worker to seek out the mentors that can help them move ahead. This begins with a desire to be great at what you do. My mentors often broke me down to build me up. They did this to make me stronger and tougher. But, if I lacked the requisite desire to become better at my work, they may not have been able to teach me what I needed to learn.

Figure out how to make the mentorship relationship a two way street. For example, people with many years of work experience can know a lot about leadership but can know less than their own kids about the latest consumer technologies (e.g., new apps or web tools). If you are tech savvy, you could offer to teach them about new technologies in exchange for mentoring you in leadership. Or if you are an expert in a popular sport or hobby, you may be able to offer yourself as a mentor in that in exchange for mentorship in your career related field. Take an inventory of the skills and expertise you have to offer and see if any potential professional mentors to you would have an interest in those.

I agree, but the partnership with a professional coach is totally focused on the client. There is no quid pro quo outside of the payment of any fees and showing up for the session.

While all three can have mutually beneficial partnership aspects, coaching has different benefits. Other than learning and experience the coach gains, the coaching should be about you, not the coach. Also, coaching internally versus externally often has very different purposes behind it. Whether it is a coach you hire or one your employer pays for, they should partner with you to become your best self overall. Importantly, if a coach is being paid for by your employer, the coach should have a "fiduciary relationship" with you, regardless of who pays. Coaching is most successful when confidentiality, combined with a psychologically safe environment, allows you to address your needs authentically and confidentially.

Well-meaning managers can proficiently use coaching techniques where appropriate to manage their people and encourage and support their growth. The challenge is they are ALWAYS a manager using coaching to manage. Authentic coaching is impossible for a manager to execute and employees to experience due to an unequal power dynamic and a lack of psychological safety for a coachee. An outside certified coach is 100% committed to supporting clients’ development and growth. Professional coaches understand how to create environments that promote psychological safety and are peers or co-equals with clients. Coaches are nonjudgmental and encourage clients to share truth, explore beliefs, self-talk, practice skills, and create insights.

As a mentor my clients are looking for me to have more expertise in the issues they are facing and sharing my knowledge, experience and resources with them. They decide how to apply that or not. As a coach I am the guide to help them use the knowledge, experience and resources they already have in a more fruitful The leverage comes from understanding when it's best to take which approach and build that all important chemistry.

- Use their advice: Use the advice of your mentors, coaches, and sponsors to help you develop your leadership skills. Ask them for help with specific challenges you're facing. - Get their help: Ask your mentors, coaches, and sponsors to help you get opportunities. They can introduce you to people, help you network, and advocate for you. - Pay it forward: Once you have achieved your goals, be sure to pay it forward. Mentor, coach, and sponsor others who are just starting out in their careers.

Maintaining your network of professional advisors depends on the growth of those individuals, as well as your willingness to be an active recipient of their guidance. Sometimes you need to move on from one of these types of professional advisors and supporters in order to ensure your continued growth. Yes, mentees can outperform and outgrow their own mentors, coaches and even sponsors. Being an active participant in these relationships is key to successful engagements with these people as well. Don’t expect for people to stick around or keep giving you their valuable time, advice, guidance and/or stamp of approval if you aren’t willing to show up and be active.

The best way to maintain the support relationships you've built is to understand that it's a two-way street and reciprocity is important. While you may benefit from guidance and advice from those who are more experienced, think of ways to also be of service to those who help you. Can you offer to write a LinkedIn recommendation? Or refer them to be a speaker at the next employee resource group event? Or be a professional reference when needed? If you're not sure how you can be of support, simply ask. Keep in touch with your mentors, coaches, and sponsors, not only for your own goals but as a way to also support them when possible.

Find ways to give your mentors some payback for the time they invest in you. For example, you could offer to write a nice recommendation for them on their LinkedIn profile. That can make them happy while costing you little more than a few minutes of your time. (Bonus Tip: AI chatbots can be a good help in writing recommendations.)

As I meet new fellow coaches I vet them before connecting to them on LInkedIn in a wide-ranging conversation to get to know their work ethic and the driving force(s) that makes them good. I ask that they comment on my posts and I reciprocate, and in doing this regularly, it builds cohesion and trust. Referrals come from our mutally being relevant and reliable.

- Stay in touch. Keep in touch with your mentors, coaches, and sponsors, even if you're not actively working with them. - Be supportive. Be there for your mentors, coaches, and sponsors when they need you. - Show your appreciation. Let your mentors, coaches, and sponsors know how much you appreciate their help.

Exceptional leaders understand the importance of growing and maintaining an engaged network. They also understand that networking is a strategic process and it happens at every touchpoint! LinkedIn is my favorite community for “networking my ambitions!” #LeadLoudly #mentorship #sponsorship #allyship

Networking is one of the best ways to grow this particular network. Go to your company events and conferences. Take every opportunity you are given to connect with senior leaders. Ask people you respect and see succeeding in their careers about who they use as a coach. Research coaches on your own. Make sure you align with the coach, and the coach can align with you. If you want to grow your sponsors, then volunteer, lead by example, and show up when others won’t. Last, but definitely not least, use platforms like LinkedIn to broaden your reach of professionals who can add value to your career and life goals.

Regardless of whether they are a coach, mentor, and/or sponsor, you will know the relationship is right for you based on how you feel and whether you are moving forward and making progress, remaining stuck, or worse. Start with interviewing them and continuously evaluate whether you are getting what you need while also being grateful and respectful of the other person’s willingness to be a part of your success journey. As you grow and evolve, so will your needs. It's ok to move on when one portion of your journey reaches its destination, and you start another.

Don’t forget that even when you are starting out, you can mentor someone with less experience then you. This is often overlooked. Giving back by helping others is incredibly rewarding.