MENTORSHIP
What does mentoring look like , exactly ? “ Maybe it ’ s a phone call before they go into an interview , to give them confidence ,” says Lydia Ramirez , senior vice president at Five Star Bank . the biggest challenge of mentorship is when “ people don ’ t listen to me .”
Do you want to become a mentor but you ’ re not sure where to start ? Official programs like Leadership Sacramento or Ascenders Academy are obvious onramps , but often it just sort of happens . When Hogan was teaching a design class at Sacramento City College , one of her students invited her to lunch . “ I was confused ,” Hogan says with a laugh . “ Like , are we friends ?” And then at the end of the lunch the student said , “ Now I have a mentor !” Hogan and the student stayed in touch and frequently discussed her career path , “ and now she ’ s making six figures .”
Hogan also endorses what she calls “ peer mentoring .” She organized a group of six artists called the Creative Mastermind Group that meets every two weeks . This is more structured than the occasional coffee . Their sessions alternate between group critique and the “ hot seat hive mind ” where members gently but constructively critique each other ’ s work and then help one another tackle specific problems with clients or careers . “ I hope you encourage people to start their own group ,” says Hogan . “ It ’ s not that hard !”
The surprising mentoring ROI
In one sense , mentoring is an act of volunteering that ’ s chicken soup for the cubicle soul . It ’ s selfless . “ I ’ m still kind of verklempt by how willing these established professionals were to give back to their creative communities ,” says Wacker . “ They don ’ t really have any reason to do this .” But in another sense , even if this is not their motivation , mentors often do benefit from the relationship in surprising ways .
“ It ’ s good for business ,” says Einhorn , who has found that over the course of her long career , sometimes mentees can get new jobs , move up
09.15.22
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72 comstocksmag . com | July 2022