{"id":48272,"date":"2018-02-26T05:00:41","date_gmt":"2018-02-26T13:00:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.creativecircle.com\/?p=47842"},"modified":"2018-02-26T05:00:41","modified_gmt":"2018-02-26T13:00:41","slug":"advice-make-most-mentor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.creativecircle.com\/blog\/advice-make-most-mentor\/","title":{"rendered":"Advice to Help You Make the Most of the Mentor in Your Life"},"content":{"rendered":"

Often, when we hear about successful people\u2019s career paths, \u201cI had a mentor\u201d is a response to the question of how they launched. This has, for better or for worse, caused the up-and-comers to think that mentorship is an automatic investment that comes in any job role, company, industry, or LinkedIn connection. As a result, people are mistakenly assigning the role of \u201cYoda\u201d<\/a> in their own lives, or worse, feeling let down if they don\u2019t find one, sure that they won\u2019t move forward without apprenticeship.<\/p>\n

Although the desire to have someone you admire take interest in your career is valid (and can be very fruitful), there is a strategy for both knowing how to ask for a mentor and knowing what to look for in this person to maximize learning from them.<\/p>\n

Even if you can\u2019t control when and how you will become a mentee, here are some key things to consider when asking to learn from the best and the brightest:<\/p>\n

Be clear about what you want to learn<\/h2>\n

There is the age-old saying, \u201cThe world isn\u2019t waiting for you.\u201d Just because you\u2019re ready to jump-start your career doesn\u2019t mean that everyone\u2019s attention is geared in your direction. Before reaching out to the person you want to learn from, spend time thinking about the type of work you\u2019d like to be doing, what you\u2019ve learned from the work you\u2019ve already done, and what you believe your innate skillsets to be. Consider the value proposition, \u201cWIIFM (What\u2019s In It For Me),\u201d when reaching out to the person you want to connect with. Ask yourself: What do they get out of your relationship?<\/strong> You need to be able to align your desired growth with your mentor\u2019s needs, keeping in mind that they need to find fulfillment from your relationship as well.<\/p>\n

Don’t let your goals get in the way of learning<\/h2>\n

Being goal-oriented is, of course, important in getting things done or finding success through achievements. However, if you hyper-focus on what your bottom line is, you might just get in the way of what you\u2019re meant to learn. Make sure you keep your mind open and your end-goal in check when working with your mentor<\/strong> so as to not miss the journey for the sake of the destination. It\u2019s also possible that you will need different types of mentors at growing parts of your life.<\/p>\n

Make room for their story<\/h2>\n

Even though you might be enthusiastic about your own pursuits, you must always prioritize learning about how others have gotten to where they are now first. Questions that encourage vulnerability always prompt a more meaningful conversation.<\/p>\n