Top Tips for Securing Your Ideal Mentor

Finding your ideal mentor is hard. Here are our top tips for how to find a mentor who fits your needs...

1. Think about what you want from a mentor before trying to find one.

Get really clear on your goals and objectives – whether that be the desire to learn more about a particular industry because you are changing into a new role, maybe you want to become a better leader, or maybe you want to find a better work-life balance, get clear on your goals.

2. Make sure you are ready to commit to the role of a great mentee.

Ensure you have the time, capacity and head space, and mental commitment to be able to set up and really own the mentoring relationship – make sure you can maximise the precious time that you’re getting from a mentor. Ideally, to make the most of the relationship, you would be meeting once a month.

3. Reach out to your connections to find your mentor.

Now we’re getting to the point where you actually find that mentor. Scan your existing network, reach out to your second-degree connections, and utilise social media to find new connections through Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Facebook. You can also attend networking events, although it’s hard to ask someone after one networking conversation.

4. Reach out with a personalised message.

Ensure when you reach out that you have a personalised message, they’ll be much likelier to respond if it’s really personalised and has an emotional hook. For instance, give them a compliment about their experience or a recent achievement, making them feel like you are genuinely interested… which hopefully you are if you’re reaching out to them.

5. Be persistent!

There is a fine balance between being persistent and being that annoying person. Just because someone hasn’t responded to you straight away, don’t be scared, follow up. Everyone’s busy these days so just make sure you are confident and backing yourself – make sure you follow up a couple of times before moving on.

6. Find out if your employer or industry association provides mentoring.

Many employers and industry associations will provide mentoring as a benefit to their employees/members. If they don’t, ask them whether they would consider it. The more that mentoring is ‘in demand’, the more they’ll consider it for future years.

You can find out more about Brancher here:?www.brancher.com.au