Having at least one mentor can be vital to your internship or job search process, as well as throughout your career. Finding a mentor is one thing, but knowing how to get the most out of your relationship with him or her is another.
1. Be clear about what kind of help you are looking for. “Make sure to have a purpose to your outreach. If it takes more than two sentences to explain what you are looking for, you’re not clear enough yet on what your ‘ask’ is. The key to success in managing mentors is having good questions,” said Andrea Rice, president and co-founder of Gotta Mentor.
Jenny Floren, founder and CEO of Experience, Inc., adds, “At the start of the relationship, the mentor and mentee should sit down and come up with a list of goals they want to accomplish together. Goals can vary considerably from advancing one’s career to how to manage work-life balance. Having agreed upon goals will allow the two of you to achieve them.”
2. Establish a communication plan. “Both the mentor and mentee should discuss when and how often to speak with each other, so expectations are set on both sides from the beginning. Keep in mind, the plan doesn’t need to end after the mentee has achieved the goals, as mentors can still provide valuable advice five, 10 or 15 years down the road. Mentoring programs like Experience Mentors provide users with a great way to connect, share advice and keep the lines of communication open,” said Floren.
Rice adds, “Keep your mentor informed about progress you’re making on the topics you’ve discussed and your career in general. The more they know about you and your interests, the more helpful they can be.”
3. Give your mentor something to react to. “Mentors are generally far more effective giving you feedback than doing the brainstorming for you. If you are interested in getting guidance on switching jobs, present your mentor with your thoughts on the approach that you think makes sense. The feedback you get will be far more specific and useful than asking the mentor to do all of the brainstorming for you,” said Rice.
Floren adds, “Asking questions is perhaps the most essential element of the relationship. In order for a mentee to benefit from what advice and knowledge their mentors have, mentees must take on the responsibility of asking questions. Questions can spark discussion topics and bring out new ideas that may have not been previously thought of.”
4. Do your homework. “There’s no excuse for not preparing before a scheduled meeting with a mentor. Do your own research ahead of time, and be ready with questions tailored to your mentor. Asking your mentor to explain basic information that you could easily figure out yourself communicates either laziness or thoughtlessness, and will have a significant, negative influence on the amount of time your mentor is willing to spend time with you in the future,” said Rice.
5. Build a relationship. “The people you have connected to in some meaningful way are far more likely to be helpful than those you know superficially. Just having access to people doesn’t mean that they’ll invest in you or your success. They have to genuinely like you, and that doesn’t happen overnight, and it certainly won’t happen if you’re just in it for what can benefit you. Get to know your mentors, and see how you can be helpful to them,” said Rice.
6. Use your mentor’s network. “As a new person to the workforce, mentees are not likely to have many contacts in their industry. Mentors can provide them with a wide range of professionals with whom they can network. This network can be used as a stepping stone for the mentee to build up his or her own network,” said Floren.
7. Open yourself to new ideas. “As a mentee, your mentor is welcoming you to a world that is completely new and unfamiliar. In order to maximize the benefits from this relationship, you should approach the situation with a fresh and open mind, welcoming in as many new ideas as possible,” said Floren.
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