How to get a Mentor and what does Mentorship entail?

Having a mentor is very crucial in the advancement of your career, as a

developing professional. Excellent mentors can be your personal confidante to

many of your ideas, offer useful and informative suggestions, expose you to

qualified individuals in your field and might actually provide assistance in

obtaining a new employment opportunity.

Having a relationship with your mentor can prompt rapid advancements and

proper decision making in your continued success career-wise. You will probably not be discovered by the most ideal mentor except if you take control and develop a lasting relationship that will help you succeed. But this does not just require you to simply meet any company executive and ask him if he would like to be your mentor.

You have to choose the proper candidate and develop a transparent and genuine

relationship with the individual to enable a natural Mentorship. The following are

techniques that can be implemented when choosing the perfect mentor.

Locate the perfect candidate.

There are some things that must be carried out before requesting mentoring from

top executives through email. It is very important to discover the perfect

candidate that will provide the most benefits, can create time to provide the

required assistance and offer you mutual communication preferences.

Evaluate your career objectives and the benefits that you want your mentor to

provide.

An individual who is some levels above you and has the attributes you long for

and can create the required time and commitment to assisting you should be

selected. Consider someone who you respect who could usually be in your

company and the areas in which their objectives and career path correspond with

your own.

You can contact your human resource department if you have difficulties

recognizing the perfect candidate. There are situations where a Mentorship

program can be developed by your company where certain requirements might

be used to appoint a mentor.

The human resource department can still be the perfect place in recognizing or

creating an avenue of connecting with the perfect candidate in your organization

if this Mentorship program doesn’t exist.

Carry out preemptive findings in your industry and the candidate you hope to

approach to become aware of their background, so that when you meet, you can

make inquiries on what professional advice they can provide.

An individual might not be able to provide the required advice on situations they

never experienced or projects they never carried out. Rather, get ready and ask

significant questions about their career-related experiences.

Carry out the request.

Your relationship journey with your preferred mentor starts when you have

discovered the perfect candidate. An official Mentorship request is not required,

especially when starting.

The person might be unexpectedly surprised or confused if you outright ask him

to become your mentor without knowing him initially. Their style of

communication might be completely different from yours and if they finally

decide to mentor you, you might end up becoming attached to an individual that

you have challenges working with.

Approach your prospective mentor through a casual meeting to request for some

counsel about how to begin the relationship and determine if the meeting would

have a future.

Request for a piece of advice to kickstart the relationship. They will be aware of

what fascinates you the most about them through your first introduction (such as

their leadership skills, professional experience, and work). You can request for

advice that relates to your profession.

Value the time you spend together and ensure the introductory meeting is casual

and quick, such as simply getting some coffee. There is a high chance your

prospective mentor will become frightened if you initially ask for an hour of lunch.

An example of requesting Mentorship from an individual.

Hi Mr. Doe,

I have been an admirer of your professional experience from a far distance for a long while. Your ability to lead is a big motivation for me, and I was thinking if I could

approach you for professional advice. I am only requesting for about 15 minutes of

your time, and I could not imagine anything better than to buy you coffee. Please

get back to me if you would be available for a meeting and your schedule over the

coming weeks.

Thank you

Jane Doe

If the meeting was successful during coffee, then you can decide on subsequent

quarterly meetings. You can then make an official request after you become more

comfortable or fully aware of your preferred mentor.

Your expectations concerning the relationship should be clarified in this situation.

The number of times you would meet, the mode of communication either over

the phone or in person. This should be initially determined so that your mentor

will have a clear idea of your expectations.

Your intended discussions should also be very clear. Will you be requesting

professional advice, discussing career modifications or are you simply in need of

training? Your mentor should know these expectations to devote valuable time and

resources that would be of help.

Remain Courteous.

Regardless of the response offered by your prospective mentor, you need to be

thankful and express your gratitude even if they turned down your request. Your

relationship should be open and professional even if they end up becoming your

mentor or not.

Your potential mentor might currently have a lot on their plate, but they would

remember you whenever their schedule is free, it is therefore important to

remain polite, positive and open about the relationship.

If they have difficulties in deciding, then you can inquire from them how you can

be of assistance There might be situations where you can offer them something

such as distributing their written articles or advertising an approaching project.

Having something of worth to offer them will prompt a harmonious relationship

where you can both render assistance to one another.

You will have a greater chance of success, become an excellent employee and a

career transformation when there is an available mentor to provide professional

advice. Selecting the perfect candidate and appropriately presenting yourself can

be the turning point in your future achievements.

Individuals who have made it to the top, have at some time been assisted by a

mentor and are eager to return the favor. They only require it to be pleasant, with

a clear expectation of what is demanded of them.

Follow these suggestions and begin your journey towards an excellent

Mentorship relationship and keep moving ahead in your profession.