When you’re looking to change careers, it can be hard to find your place. You may not be sure if you have what it takes to make it, or even what to do next. Sometimes, all it takes is a little nudge in the right direction – a push from someone else who’s already been there and done that and wants to see you succeed. Finding the right mentor can be a challenging proposition. Not only are there many things to consider during this process, but you’ll want a mentor who is well-suited to your needs and goals. Here are some things you should consider.
Your mentor should have relevant knowledge or experience
When you’re looking for a mentor, you want someone with expertise who can help you to achieve your professional goals. And this has a lot to do with your mentor having the relevant wisdom and lived experience to give meaningful advice. A mentor should be someone who has been in your shoes before, or at least has a good sense of where you are and where you want to be—in other words, they need to understand the critical contexts of your professional situation. After all, you don’t want to end up having to keep explaining yourself over and over and not having a satisfying mentorship experience.
Your mentor should challenge you to do better
As you are pursuing a new career, you might find it useful to have a mentor who can walk you through the steps involved in finding a new position or career path. Mentorship is a tool that helps you grow professionally, but to find the right one, you have to look for mentors who will challenge you in the right way. Honest feedback helps guide your professional growth. You need someone who is willing to give you truthful feedback about where you stand and how well you are performing. A mentor isn’t just someone who gives advice or “tips;” they also help you reach a specific goal by providing actionable information, statistics and first-hand suggestions that will help you become better at your job.
Your Mentor Is Someone You Can Look Up To
Your mentor doesn’t need to know everything about you, but they should be someone you can look up to—someone who attracts you and inspires your respect. Mentors are there to help with any difficulties you’re faced with, whether personal or professional. As you search for someone to mentor you, look for one who is a positive role model. The most important thing is to make sure that a mentor is someone that makes you feel respected and supported, rather than intimidated and belittled. They shouldn’t be talking down to mentees, but instead helping them learn and grow in a pleasant atmosphere.
Your mentor can open doors for you
Many people want to find mentors who will open doors for them, but you can’t find the right person by looking at their status within a company or how long they’ve been doing something. Instead, you need to look at what they’ve done. There are many different things they could have achieved and gone after in their career, and you want someone who is well-respected by the people around them, who has an active network of connections that could benefit you in your career or business.
Conclusion
New career paths often bring different challenges than we are used to, and finding someone to help you tackle these new challenges can make all the difference when trying to succeed. When it comes to advancing your career, a great mentor can help you achieve your professional goals faster and more efficiently than if you were trying to go at it alone. If you’re looking to improve your professional standing, Quest Discovery Academy offers career development workshops and career coaching workshops that can help with both of these things and get you pointed in the right direction toward taking action. Chat with us today to learn more about how we can further assist you!