Mentoring: Why do I need a mentor?

Everyone should have a mentor.

You might have people you look up to who inspire you, you might even have a supportive boss who champions your development, but have you thought about having someone, external to your company, to listen, engage with and push you towards new goals?

Mentoring can take many forms but ultimately it can allow people to discover their potential, take control of their development and be held accountable for reaching their ambitions.

A mentorship can assist you in developing new skills, introduce you to relevant contacts and be truly inspiring, raising your confidence and keeping you focused on your career objectives. However, there are some crucial aspects to keep in mind when working with a mentor to ensure you get the most out of the relationship.

1. Planning: get to know yourself.

Mentorships require you to take an active role and fully commit to the process. The better you know yourself, your successes and future goals the more you will be able to gain from a mentorship. What is your personality type? What is your preferred style of working? What have been your career highlights and successes? What are your medium and longer-term career goals? Where do you feel constrained or have pain-points in your development? What are you truly passionate about? By thinking deeply and making lists on these topics, really delving into where you are at currently and where you want to get to, will give you a clearer picture of your own self.

Take time ahead of your meeting to plan out your different career goals.

2. Be Prepared.

Before your first meeting with your mentor, have a think about what you want to gain from the mentorship? Is it to become empowered? To identify new goals? To keep developing and realise new skills? To change career paths? To be held accountable? By having some clarity around the main aims you have for your mentorship, will give you a real focus.

Ahead of the meeting do your research on your mentor. Where has their career path taken them, the industries, companies and roles they have held. Look at their LinkedIn profile, do a Google search on them, have they written anything or been quoted anywhere? Be prepared and have a good picture of who they are and what they have done to get to where they are.

Also, have an agenda in mind and note down the key topics you wish to cover at the meeting. Have relevant questions ready which will help to get to know your mentor further as well as topics you want to bring up and discuss.

Planning and research are essential preparation ahead of the first meeting with your mentor.

3. The Relationship.

Mentoring needs to be based on honesty, openness and a strong connection. The first meeting will need to ascertain whether everyone feels comfortable, that the conversation can flow and the foundation for a relationship can be built upon. You will need to be committed, be prepared to be honest and willing to talk about both your achievements and weaknesses in order for your mentor to get a good understanding of you.

The initial meeting will also set up the way ahead. You will need to discuss what format and structure you want to adopt for future sessions as well as how frequently you meet and decide what you both feel is realistic to commit to.

Goals should be set which are SMART to hold you accountable to a timeframe and to allow for the success of the goals to be measured and show you the progress.

4. Get to work.

One thing to remember, being mentored means to receive advice, constructive criticism and potentially negative feedback. Be prepared to actively listen to what your mentor is advising and be open and receptive to what they have to say.

Your mentor will be there to push you and hold you accountable to what you have said you will do. To get the best from this relationship take notes on action points and be prepared to commit to putting the work in, ahead of your next meeting.

Take time to reflect on the progress you are making. What do you feel is working best for you within the current structure? Do you need to change things up? Do you want to work on something different? How are you finding the sessions? Keep evaluating how things are going to get the best out of each session.

Having a mentor can be a fantastic opportunity to really develop in your career.

5. It’s a two-way street.

The time your mentor is spending with and investing in developing you is invaluable and can be hugely beneficial. Always remember to demonstrate your gratitude for their guidance and support and if there are ways you can pay-it-forward to someone else, don’t forget to think about what you could be doing to support someone else on their journey, now or in the future.