How to Get the Most of Your Next Mentor Experience

Professional mentors can do it all. Help you design a career trajectory, advance at work, and ultimately provide an ally to lean on for answers and advice. But how do you find, and ask someone to participate in this truly transformational relationship?

Finding the right mentor for you

Understand your own career goals. The key to identifying the right mentor is to seek out people with the skills you want to have or job you ultimately want to hold. So, you need to understand your own goals. Ask yourself the following key questions before starting the process of finding a mentor:

·      What do you want to learn from the experience?

·      Where kind of advice do you need?

·      What positions are you interested in learning more about?

·      What skills do you have versus need to learn to advance at work?

Start with your network. Look within your network to identify potential mentors. Focus on people you respect and really want to learn from. Use LinkedIn as a starting point and don’t just stick to your connections. Look into the connections of coworkers and friends as they may be able to introduce you to the right mentor.

Research thought leaders in your industry. Do your homework and find individuals who are known in your field. Not sure who is a thought leader? Read industry magazines or join a professional network. When conducting this research ask yourself the following questions to narrow down your choice of mentor.

·      Is their work relevant to you?

·      Can you relate to their work or struggles they’ve faced?

·      Do you look up to them or do you look up to their success?

·      Are there key traits about this person that you admire or would like to learn how to do yourself?

·      Is this person in a place in their life or career that you aspire to be?

Making the ask

Connection is key. The ask can be a bit nerve racking but don’t worry. Ease into it. Meet with the person once or twice before you ask them to be your mentor. It is important you ensure this is a good fit before popping the question. Once you form a little bond then the ask will be easy.  

Make the ask. Once you have established a connection then go for it and make the ask. It is best to make the ask in person, but email also works. When asking someone to be your mentor be clear as to why. Let the individual know how much you look up to their path and would appreciate the opportunity to hear about their career journey. Give them an idea of the advice you are seeking or types of jobs or careers you are interested in learning about.

Reiterate that you are not looking to take a lot of their time. When you make the ask be sure to tell the individual how often you would like to meet and how. Make the time commitment very realistic for the other individual. Assure them that you will come to every meeting prepared. Make it very known that you value their time, especially because it is very limited.

Creating a productive relationship

Set regular meetings. Productive mentoring relationships involve monthly touch points (including a mix of in-person meetings, calls, and emails). As the mentee, you should take the initiative to set up any meetings and be the first to send an email. Be proactive!

Keep it short and to the point. Keep the meetings on the brief side and be very cognizant of the time your mentor is providing you. Spend about 15-minutes to half an hour meeting, unless your mentor specifically states they can give you more time.

Be prepared. Come with pre-planned topics and questions but also be very ready to just LISTEN. You are getting some valuable advice from your mentor so they should be doing most of the talking. Some questions you can ask your mentor include:

·      How did you get into your career?

·      What are the most important skills needed to do your job?

·      What types of degrees or courses are needed to break into your industry?

·      Have you read any books that have helped shaped your career or helped you at work?

·      What is your leadership style?

·      How did you learn to embrace failure?

·      Have you even done a career shift and what was that like?

·      What advice can you offer on how to advance in my career?

Stay committed. Always be on time to your mentor meetings and don’t cancel at the last minute. Do the work needed to keep the relationship going including giving your mentor updates on progress in-between meetings and check-ins.

Always say thank you. After every meeting make sure you send a thank you email recapping the discussion and what you got out of it. Be positive and let your mentor know what next steps you will be taking based on the discussion. Send a personal thank you note or card via mail for an added personal touch. 

Need some extra help in landing or cultivating a mentor relationship? Shoot me any questions and I'd be happy to help!