^^one of my college mentorsIn college, it was natural to form relationships with mentors. You sought career and academic advice from professors and older students. In turn, you helped younger students pick classes and choose majors.
In the professional world, I've found that it is much harder to create these kinds of relationships. My boss was a mentor of sorts—he gave me feedback and helped guide my professional development—but he was also the person with the power to fire me, a fact that inhibited trust.
I still talk to some of my mentors from the past, but they are no longer as relevant. I am great friends with one of my high school English teachers, for example, but she has either been a student or a teacher her entire life, so she can't exactly instruct me in the professional world.
Talking with my friend John last night, I concluded that at this point in my life searching for mentors and mentees will be necessarily awkward and intentional. But still worth it. John said that someone once approached him in graduate school and said, "I want you to be my mentor." Luckily, he was game.
How have you managed to form mentor relationships post-college? Or have you?
3 comments:
I imagine it is definitely hard to form mentor relationships when you are working for yourself. Luckily when I started my job, I was assigned a true mentor, and we have not only become great friends but she has taught me almost everything I know about my job. The culture at my job is very open to mentoring (even if it isn't your officially assigned person), and I have found it very helpful. I also think its better because my mentor is my colleague, and not actually my boss.
I was lucky enough to meet several people through work (but not people at the same organization) who have been great mentors. I met them organically, so i don't really know how you pursue those kind of relationships otherwise. I think you just have to take the plunge, ask someone who you admire for whatever reason to coffee, and then hopefully prepare some intelligent questions to ask them.
@brittany: That is awesome that your company assigns mentors. I love when organizations acknowledge that you aren't just there to make money; you also want to grow professionally and cultivate relationships.
@rachel: Good for you. You have been surrounded by so many great people in your job. I am working on the asking people out to coffee part (just did it Monday!) and I'm hoping maybe someone at my internship will want to take me under their wing. I think I just need to be patient and watchful for opportunities.
Thanks for your remarks!
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