Mentor

I have always admired and liked the idea of having a mentor from an incredibly young age, but I never really had that opportunity for reasons unknown to me; probably because I did not put in the effort until recently.

 Who is a mentor? A mentor is a more experienced and knowledgeable person than yourself! A mentor could be older or younger; but what is important is the impact the mentor is making or will make in your life. It is important to understand that you need to be able to trust your mentor as you will be disclosing a lot about yourself to that person. You need to choose someone you trust and respect when it comes to mentor ship.

There are different types of mentoring, but I will be discussing three in this article

• One on one mentoring- this is the traditional form of mentoring and probably the most common. This is where a mentor and mentee enter a mentorship relationship to help the mentee develop or improve in an area, they are struggling in.

• Peer mentoring- can involve friends or colleagues of similar age or educational level taking turns to mentor one another. This kind of mentorship is incredibly good in holding each other accountable for set goals.

• Group mentoring- this type of mentorship is quite common in organisations (work etc.) it usually involves one mentor working with several mentees and the duration is usually short in comparison to the other types of mentoring I have mentioned above. This is also good for team building etc.

The benefits of having a mentor

• Having advice on developing strengths and working on your weaknesses 

• Guidance on professional development and personal development 

• The opportunity to develop new skill and knowledge 

• Exposure to new ways of thinking etc.

How to get a mentor

You can ask someone you look up to or admire their work to be your mentor either via email or face to face. Before asking for a mentor make sure you are clear on your goal and why you think that mentor is good for you. Be strategic and upfront about your time commitment, what you are willing to put into the mentoring relationship and what you expect from them. Let the mentor know what you like about their work especially if its someone you have never met.

Top tips:

• As well as having a mentor it is important for you to be a mentor to others especially youths

• Mentoring is not free, but there are so many mentors who will be willing to offer their services for free depending on the kind of mentoring you seek

• A mentor is not the same as a coach (career or personal development coach).