Full Transcription for the video lesson below:
Welcome, I’m Farnoosh Brock. I’m a career expert that helps you get promoted and create your ideal career, and today we talk about a three-step process that helps you land your ideal mentor.
Now, if you’re not sure why you need a mentor to be successful, please make sure to watch the video I made earlier because everyone that has had any level of success in corporate or in business has had more than one mentor.
Now, let’s talk about a three-step process that helps you get the ideal mentor for you.
Finding a Mentor: Who is Right for You?
Number one, I call it “The acquisition of the mentor,” if you will.
Who’s going to be your mentor? Well, think about the people that you admire. Now, mentors are people internal to your company, as opposed to coaches that would be outside the company. So, think about people that you admire as leaders, as professionals, as great people, successful people, and identify three to five people you would love to have as your mentors.
Don’t be shy here because don’t think that people are out of your reach, out of your league- think that everyone is a fair game. And, if you have no idea, then look at the people who are successful at your level or a little above you and approach them and ask them if they have ever had a mentor, and if they are willing to share who that was. So, this gives you some ideas on how to identify the top three to five people that would be your great mentors.
The Simple Technique on How to Approach the Mentor
So the next step is “Interacting with the mentor” – approaching the mentor.
This is the second step in the process. Now, when you do this, you need to go into this confidently. You don’t need to think of this as you asking them a favor which is what most people think about, and to be honest with you, the mentor gets a lot of satisfaction and reward from the relationship assuming it’s a gratifying, good relationship between the two of you. I had a fantastic mentor who was an extremely successful and busy woman back in my corporate job, and she told me that my success showed her the reward she needed from the relationship.
So don’t be shy. You approach the mentor, and usually this is in person if you can manage that, or on the phone. The last resort is email. When you approach them, maybe you include these things in your communication:
Number one; show that you admire this person, their leadership qualities, what they have done for the company. Maybe there are specifics that you can mention in terms of their accomplishments.
And then, tell them that you are looking for someone to help you grow professionally. Tell them that you would love that person to be them, and you would love to enter into a mentoring relationship with them.
Then, tell them what you hope to get out of this mentoring relationship and what you hope to put into it; what you intend to put into it.
So, include this in the communication either in person, your first choice, and then if not, over the phone or in email, and go ahead and have this interaction.
Exactly What to Say when Mentor Says Yes. Or No.
The last step of the process, the third step, is “The follow-up,” or the reaction, or the thing that you do after you hear back from the mentor.
So, how many ways can this go? They say, “Sure, I’d love to be your mentor,” and then you move on to developing a successful, mentoring relationship.
But, the other one that scares most of us is what if they reject us, and here is the deal: they don’t reject you as a person- they just turn down this particular proposal or opportunity, if you will. So, if that happens, here are a couple of things you can do:
- You can ask them whether they would be willing to consider this in 6 months or 9 months when maybe things get easier or they have more time to invest.
- Another question that you want to ask is, whether they can think of someone else that could serve as your mentor. So continue the dialogue so that they see you are serious, you’re serious about yourself, about developing yourself as a professional, and that you put some thought into this.
You didn’t just ask them a random question, and you may be surprised first of all that they may change their mind, and if not, they may put you in touch with other people who may serve as a great mentor for you.
So, that’s the three-step process, and to recap really quickly:
- It’s the “acquisition of the mentor”
- It’s the “approaching the mentor” and interacting with them
- And then, it’s your “reaction and following up” after the mentor has responded to you.
Put that process in place and go get yourself a great mentor. If you want to find out more about me, come visit me at fasttrackpromotion.com, and I’ll talk to you in the next video. Bye!
Finding a Mentor Is Just One Piece of the Puzzle
For more strategies on advancing your career, check out Crack the Code to Get Promoted. It’s my comprehensive training kit for the serious corporate professional.
