A mentor, a coach & an expert walk into a bar ..

'Mentor' seems to be a word that's thrown around a lot and keep getting asked about the difference between mentors, coaches and experts ... while I am nowhere close to being an authority on any of this, I am vain enough to brand myself as a mentor on my Linkedin profile..

So using that credibility (if any, at all) here is my take on how they are different ..

An expert is someone who has deep knowledge about a specific domain area, usually on the back of having worked in that domain. 

For example - Your team needs help in setting up a multi-country, multi-currency payment gateway that minimises both commission payments and tax liabilities on your e-commerce site. You would call in an expert to help your team get this done. The job remains the same and usually the expert has a known-standard way of getting it done with the least amount of fuss and mistakes.

A coach is someone who works with you to maximise what you already have as a skill. In the work domain, a coach will work with you on a specific, time bound goal, usually around enhancing your capability.

For example - If you wanted to improve your leadership skills and learn how to influence your team better, you would work with a coach. He would assess you and your own skill sets, then help you fig how someone like you can become an influential leader of your team. If the same coach worked on the same outcome with a different leader, the approach would change to suit his skill sets.

A mentor is someone who helps you get past your own capabilities. Mentors usually work on multiple aspects and would get to know you better than most people around you. If you work with a good mentor for decent amount of time, you end up being surprised by how much you have changed as a person, not just as a professional.

For example - If you had an innate fear of failure that stopped you from setting up your own firm OR if you feel an inability to be honest in your feedback to your boss and hence end up frustrated and bitter at work, that is something a mentor will work with you on. He will help you discover what parts of your personality hinder and which ones can u leverage to get yourself beyond the stumbling blocks.

The same person could play all three roles, but that is a rarity... and if you ask me how to find a good mentor, I might not be able to give you any clever answers.

But what I do know, is that if you can find a great coach or a good mentor, he/she can help you discover so much more about yourself. It can literally change your life - and that is definitely worth a shot, isn't it ?