Industry Magazine Get JACK'D Magazine Summer 2018 | Page 22

CAREER MENTORS
HAVING ALL of your dominoes in a row as soon as you land a
new position is ideal, but the real world doesn’t work that way.
To continue on your trajectory toward achieving extraordinary
results in the workplace, you’ll often have to think outside the
box. This even applies to finding mentors that can help you
navigate the career path to your dream job.
Many of us turn to a manager for mentorship, but that isn’t
your only resource at work. Chances are you’re surrounded by
lots of professional people every day. Cultivating relationships
with a wide variety of professionals who fit your career
mentoring criteria will often yield better results than relying on
a single mentor.
You may be surprised how many mentors – for various parts
of your life – work on the same floor or even in the cube next
door. Let’s explore your options!
CAREER
MENTORS
WHY YOUR CAREER MENTOR
DOESN’T HAVE TO BE YOUR BOSS
The ONE Thing Blog. (Why your Career Mentor Doesn’t Have to be
Your Boss). Retrieved from (the1thing.com/the-one-thing/why-your-
career-mentor-doesnt-have-to-be-your-boss/). Based on the book
The ONE Thing: The Surprisingly Simple Truth Behind Extraordinary
Results by Gary Keller and Jay Papasan, Bard Press, 2013.
Why Bosses Don’t Always Make the Best Mentors
Your boss or manager is a natural person to turn to for job-
mentoring. However, they aren’t always the best option. There
are many reasons why bosses aren’t necessarily the mentor
of choice.
Not all bosses are good communicators, which is a must for
mentorship.
Some bosses don’t have the time or focus for mentoring.
There are bosses that fear having employees surpass them in
the workplace, and that mentality isn’t conducive for mentoring.
Your boss may not have the career you want, especially if
your ideal job is in another industry.
You may not have a strong personal relationship with your
boss, or on the flip side, they may not want people thinking
they are showing you favoritism.
Being a boss and a mentor at the same time can complicate
things at work.
Even if your boss is a good mentor candidate they may not
have all the qualities and expertise needed for you to meet
your career goals.
Identifying the Different Types of Mentors You Need
Finding everything you need in one mentor is an amazing feat.
The more effective solution could be seeking out numerous
mentors that can help you with specific aspects of your career.
This requires that you first know what your end goals are and
what assistance you need to achieve them. You’ll then want to
identify the particular mentor characteristics you’re looking
for, which can be general or specific to a certain need.
The Peer Mentor
This is a person that you can identify with because you both
share the same professional level. Not only are they good as
a support system, a peer mentor is also particularly valuable
when you’re trying to break into a new field or job role that
they currently work in. As you move up in your career there’s
a good chance your peer mentor will change.
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