Navigating your way through your professional life can sometimes be very frustrating. Many times people are left confused as to what they really want out of their careers and the lack of focus can be detrimental to professional growth. Other times, you could know exactly what you want but feel you are not achieving your goals at a rate you are satisfied with. All of these problems can be solved by having a career mentor whose hindsight can become your foresight.
Below we have listed the top 3 reasons you need a career mentor. Use them as motivation to take the first step and approach someone you admire professionally.
1. Identify Your Strengths and Weaknesses
One of the biggest issues you can have professionally is not knowing your strengths and weaknesses. Your strengths are the things you want to highlight in job interviews or rely on when tackling a big project, while your weaknesses need to be worked on and tended to so they don’t hold you back. A career mentor can evaluate you professionally and tell you what your strengths and weaknesses are. Even better, they can tell you how to use those strengths to get what you want and how to overcome your weaknesses.
2. Invaluable Networking
Most likely your mentor will be in a professional level above you, which means the people they have contact with could be out of your reach in your networking efforts. Your mentor can, and most likely will, act as an advocate for you to those people that can move you up the ladder faster. Be careful not to use your mentor to introduce you to others too much, your mentor will act on their own when they see a reason for an introduction.
3. Keep Your Confidence Soaring
Let’s face it, your professional life can be brutal on your confidence sometimes. In some cases, all your best efforts will seem like they are not enough to keep you moving towards your goals. Your career mentor will not only understand this, they will have lived through this. They can tell you from first-hand experience that you are doing the right thing and that things will work out if you keep going. You can be sure to keep your confidence up by talking to someone that has not only been where you are, but broke through and achieved goals you are wanting to achieve yourself. What could be better than that?
Often times the thought of finding and approaching an individual to ask if they would be your mentor is intimidating. This discomfort factor alone keeps many people without mentors who could guide them to the career they have always wanted. Finding a mentor is not hard, they work at the same company you do in positions you want, they are on social media, or even in your church or other organizations you are already a part of.
Don’t let your fear of approaching someone you admire stop you from finding a career mentor. Make a list of potential mentors and reach out to them one by one, you will be surprised at how easy it can be to find someone willing to help you accomplish your professional dreams.