Unleashing and Channeling Your Power To Succeed

Question:
I have been thinking about getting a mentor to give me guidance on various professional issues. What should I be looking for?

Answer:
Good for you. I applaud you for taking charge of your career and being proactive. A mentoring relationship can be rewarding and provide a lot of benefits to the protégé, and the mentor, for that matter. It can also be a lot of hard work.

To ensure that you get out of the mentoring relationship what you want, I suggest that you first determine what you want out of the relationship and set specific goals and expectations. Make sure you discuss your expectations with your potential mentor to see if it is a good fit or not.

Talk with several individuals before making a decision. It’s okay to shop around and interview folks. This is about YOU. You want to be sure you are working with someone whom you can trust and with whom you are comfortable. Your mentor doesn’t need to necessarily be someone older and wiser–a mentor can also be someone who is your peer or a few steps ahead of you in your career.

Another suggestion for developing a successful mentoring relationship is to be sure that your clearly state your expectations. You want to be sure they are clear about what they can offer you in addition to establishing time and other parameters.

Trust and respect for each other are also critical elements in establishing a successful mentoring relationship. Therefore, it is important for you and your mentor to share your values and beliefs early. It is important for both of you to reveal just enough about yourselves to increase intimacy, without being too forward. Discuss this with your mentor and be sure that you are both in agreement.

Let your mentor know how you would like to communicate, both giving and receiving information. Find out how they like to give information and feedback. Then, determine if that is the best way for you. Also, determine the frequency of your conversations.

In the hectic world that we live in today, finding time for this type of relationship can be difficult. Be sure that both of you are willing to make the time commitment on a regular basis. Make regular appointments to meet; be prompt and committed. I personally think the more frequently you can meet, especially early on, the better and stronger your relationship will become.

And finally, commit to each other that you will discuss the relationship periodically. Revisit it on a regular basis to be sure that both of your needs are still being met. If they are, then continue to move ahead. If not, discuss other options and perhaps other mentor possibilities. It is guaranteed that the mentor doesn’t want to work with a protégé if the protégé doesn’t want to work with them.

Good luck and let me know when YOU become a mentor for someone.

Published by Marshall Brown, “The Career Coach Is In” for the Washington Post.
http://views.washingtonpost.com/on-success/career-coach/

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Marshall
http://www.mbrownassociates.com