Career & Business

How To Find A Mentor: 6 Steps To Get The Support You Want

September 13, 2016

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There’s one question that’s circled around our editorial meetings for quite a while now.

“How do I find a mentor to help me move ahead — especially when everyone is so darn busy these days?”

Honestly, I was surprised that this question about mentorship was asked so often. That’s probably because I have a slightly different view on the subject.

But when I took a step back, it became clear why mentorship was such a popular request. I mean…who doesn’t want someone you can turn to for advice, guidance and encouragement, right? We all do.

We’re social creatures. Community and connection are our oxygen. Plus, it’s just plain smart to build off of other people’s experience. After all, no need to reinvent the wheel or make costly mistakes, especially if you can avoid them. But some of us can find it challenging to find a mentor because:

  1. Successful people are often really, really busy. It’s not that they’re ungenerous — but, like all of us, they’re doing their best to manage extremely full schedules and the day-to-day demands of their life, work and family.
  2. “Will you be my mentor?” can be one of the most dreaded and awkward questions ever. Sheryl Sandberg wrote about this in her book Lean In and I’ve heard quite a few people feel the same way. Both people being asked and those doing the asking.

In today’s episode, you’ll get six ideas to help you get the support and guidance you need to move ahead. Even if you have no interest in finding a mentor, pay extra close attention to step #3. It’s a really common mistake people make when asking questions, and it’s easy to fix.

Once you’ve had a chance to watch, I’d love to know:

  1. Which of the six ideas can help you the most right now, and how specifically will you put this idea into action?
  2. What’s your experience with mentorship — either wanting one, having one or being one? What are some mentorship do’s and don’ts from your experience?

Leave a comment below with your answers.

Remember, share as much detail as possible in your reply. Thousands of incredible souls come here each week for insight and inspiration and your story may help someone else have a meaningful breakthrough.

Important: share your thoughts and ideas directly in the comments. Links to other posts, videos, etc. will be deleted as they come across as spammy.

Thank you for your continued kindness, contribution and generosity here.

Reading your thoughtful responses and seeing the support here in the comments is truly a highlight of my week.

P.S. Our team is busy creating brand new MarieTV episodes for you. As always, we want to make them as relevant and useful as possible. So tell me…  What’s a specific challenge in your business or life that you’re actively trying to solve right now?

XO

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