Having a career mentor who can guide you in your field and recommend the skills and training necessary to help you succeed, is an invaluable career resource to help you prepare for future advancement. Your career mentor is a person who acts as your counselor, trainer and guide toward your desired career goal.
When Choosing a Career Mentor Consider the Following Tips:
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Look for a person whom you not only feel comfortable opening up to, but also has a great deal of experience in the field or position you are interested in. They will be able to share their own experiences; what worked and what didn’t.
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Try to find a mentor who can provide you with impartial advice, as well as help mold and train you to be a better employee in your current job. This is a key aspect of a good mentor.
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A mentor should be willing to show you the ropes and help you grow and expand your professional skills.
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Your mentor should be a person who can be a resource to help you get interviews for promotions, as well as tutor you on what to say and do during the interview process.
Finding the right career mentor takes time, but the search is an important step in making sure you gain valuable business skills training. Don’t be discouraged if your manager or direct superior is not the right mentor for you. Just because there is a working relationship does not mean the ‘knowledge’ or the ‘willingness’ exist…there needs to be the right balance. (Check out our full article on creating a better balance with your boss.)
Sometimes the best person to be your career mentor is someone higher up in your company; you can also look for someone from another company in your industry or who has retired from the industry. (See our full article on how to approach your target mentor, as well as rules to follow once you are in the relationship.)
Ideally, the person you choose to be your career mentor should be someone you admire and a motivating person in your life. Professional Development is your own responsibility, that’s why finding a good mentor you can trust to answer your questions and provide feedback on your own assessment is so important. A good career mentor will not only provide you with training, but will help you to gain advancements and promotions you would not have otherwise received.
Traditionally, career mentors have been in-person relationships, but today they can also be accessed in the form of business communication resources, online coaching and management blogs that can be accessed daily. ManagingAmericans.com is designed to help leaders, managers and high potential employees succeed in their careers by providing success tips and solutions to common job issues, as well as offering expert advice and career mentors via our expert panel of business professionals, coaches and management consultants. With over 25 categories of expertise we provide free cross-functional training, support & career resources. (Learn the benefits of cross-functional learning.)
Take control of your own professional development today by conducting a skills self-assessment. This assessment process is part of a workbook that measures your leadership, management, job performance and communication skills and provides actions you can take to improve them.
We are here to help you reach your full potential, no matter which path you choose for finding a career mentor.
Good Luck!
Written by Lisa Woods, President & CEO ManagingAmericans.com
Lisa is a successful entrepreneur, world-class marketing strategist, dynamic business leader & author with more than 20 years experience leading, managing and driving growth in the corporate world. Today she provides Management Tools, Do-It-Yourself Training, and Business Assessments for small to mid size companies, Lisa utilizes her experience with integration techniques, organizational and cultural overhauls, financial turnarounds and strategic revitalization to help other companies succeed. Closing the gap between strategy and hierarchy through the use of effective communication skills, Lisa's techniques successfully develop employees into exceptional leaders, results driven managers and passionate team contributors that collectively exceed objectives.
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