Being successful is not something which happens overnight. It takes a lot of hard work, willpower, and experience. During the journey towards success, people go through many failures but they do not give up. They try harder and look up to people who are already in such position where they desire to be. Doing so helps them to become like them and successful in future.
But, the journey becomes easier when you have your own mentor who is willing to completely invest in you to make you as they are, that is, successful.
Well! Before we proceed further, let’s discuss what you understand by the term “mentor”.
Who is a Mentor?
A mentor is a person who has already traveled the road to success and has gone through every ups and down in the path which gave the person experience and a greater understanding of success.
And, if such a person is ready to share the lessons learned during the journey of creating a successful life, the person is truly worthy of being called a ‘mentor’.
Now, you might be thinking to have a mentor in your life as well, right? Below I have mentioned some tips which will help you to find the best mentor for you.
#1 Know what you want
You must keep the basic things clear in your head that which type of a mentor you want and what can you acquire from them. You must remember that seeking such a mentor who will understand your profession as well as you do and will be able to boost your career is going to be very beneficial for you. Being clear about your goals and objectives will help you find the best mentor.
But, you should also ask yourself if you are ready to put in your time and energy in being mentored by your mentor? You must keep in mind that you are responsible for your mentorship as you are the one who wanted to have a mentor and learn from them. Hence, you cannot leave everything to the mentor. You must involve yourself completely during the process of mentorship.
#2 Do well to get what you want
If you think that you will ask for a mentor and the person will mysteriously appear to help you, then you are wrong. If you are not capable enough to work hard and devote yourself entirely to what the mentors ask you to do, then it will be very hard for you to get a mentor. According to Sheryl Sandberg, instead of telling people to get mentors to excel in life, they should be told to excel first and then have a mentor.
Now, a thought might come to your mind that what does it actually mean. You must be thinking if you can achieve what you want on your own then why you would even bother to get a mentor. Well! What Sandberg wanted to say is that you need to first show your capability to learn and invest as much as you want your mentor to invest in you. Just imagine for a while, if you do not show much interest in getting a mentor or don’t pay any heed to what the has to say, then do you really think anyone would ever want to help you?
Hence, you should be ready to give them your time and show them that you are willing to learn what they have got and you are worthy of getting mentored by them.
#3 Never directly ask for mentorship
Avoid asking them directly to become a mentor of yours. It is not appropriate at all and you should certainly avoid doing the same. To make it work fine, you should set up an informal meeting with them and ask them few questions. Remember to make a list of questions before you come to the meeting as you don’t want to make your first impression go wrong.
Keep the communication informal but related to the subject of the meeting. Let the flow of the conversation become smooth because it takes some time to put aside all the awkwardness of the first meet. When you finally think that everything is normal and perfect, ask them to be your mentor. Make it very clear what you are asking for because there should be nothing left which creates any kind of confusion later on.
If the meeting goes well and you feel that the other person has listened to you carefully and answered your questions in a manner which clears your doubt, then stick with that person. But, if you feel otherwise, then you are free to approach someone else until you feel that unique connection with them.
#4 Avoid giving personal excuses
You have to show them that you are very serious to get mentored by them and make them feel that they are not wasting their precious time on you. So, if something personal is eating you up or making you frustrated, then keep all such household or personal problems at your home. Don’t carry these along with you and let it disturb or distract you from your goal. The mentors don’t appreciate such people who keep whining about their personal life and show lack of interest in the actual motive. The mentors then feel it is not worth mentoring such person and they quit their responsibilities.
Apart from such situation, make sure you don’t argue with your mentors or try to tell them they are wrong. It just shows your bad attitude and they will no longer want to help you. Always remember that they are your mentor, not you are theirs. So, respect them and do what they ask and never question their reliability.
In the end, you must keep in mind that if you commit to them like you want them to commit to you, then you will certainly be successful one day and make your mentor proud of you.
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