Episode 18 Why having a mentor will boost your career

Speaker: 00:00:04

Welcome to Unstuck and Unstoppable,

the podcast for ambitious female

2

: 00:00:09

leaders who want to create more impact,

income, and influence in their careers.

3

: 00:00:14

feel connected to their passion

and purpose, but without

4

: 00:00:17

selling out or burning out.

5

: 00:00:19

I'm Sarah Archer, a leadership coach

and career strategist, helping women

6

: 00:00:23

like you thrive in leadership roles

while staying true to your values.

7

: 00:00:28

I'm the founder of CareerTree

Coaching and have over 15 years of

8

: 00:00:32

coaching experience and significant HR

leadership experience to share with you.

9

: 00:00:38

I know as a female leader it can

be hard to find time to focus

10

: 00:00:42

on your career aspirations.

11

: 00:00:44

The day job can be all consuming.

12

: 00:00:47

Plus, no matter how senior you are,

there are always going to be times

13

: 00:00:51

when you feel stuck, when you have

self doubt, or feel like an imposter.

14

: 00:00:56

And that's where unstuck

and unstoppable comes in.

15

: 00:01:00

Each week I'll be sharing practical

strategies, insightful interviews and

16

: 00:01:05

inspiring stories to help you boost

your confidence, lead with purpose

17

: 00:01:10

and achieve sustainable success.

18

: 00:01:13

If you're ready to stop playing

small and unlock the incredible

19

: 00:01:16

potential you have within you and feel

unstoppable, you're in the right place.

20

: 00:01:22

Let's get started.

21

: 00:01:27

Welcome to episode 18.

22

: 00:01:29

I'm really glad you're here today.

23

: 00:01:31

We're going to talk about how a

mentor can help you in your career.

24

: 00:01:36

What I thought we'd talk about is

some of the benefits to having a

25

: 00:01:38

mentor and then what you can do to

identify what it is you want and how

26

: 00:01:45

you can find the right mentor for you.

27

: 00:01:47

Because when I was looking at this

there's not much information that out

28

: 00:01:50

there about how you can find a mentor.

29

: 00:01:52

Often it's about how you

set up a mentoring scheme

30

: 00:01:55

or how you can be a mentor.

31

: 00:01:57

So I thought it'd be useful to

do this today around mentoring,

32

: 00:01:59

because it really is your secret

weapon in your career arsenal.

33

: 00:02:03

There was some research done, I

think in: 2019

34

: 00:02:08

3, 000 professionals, and I think

around 76 percent said they I thought

35

: 00:02:13

having a mentor was a great idea,

but only 37 percent actually had a

36

: 00:02:18

mentor, which is surprisingly low.

37

: 00:02:21

I think, there's not that many people out

there who've organized a mentor and it

38

: 00:02:25

can really boost your career having one.

39

: 00:02:27

You don't have to wait for your

organization to find one for

40

: 00:02:30

you or to have it as part of

some career development program.

41

: 00:02:33

You can be proactive in deciding

you want to have a mentor and

42

: 00:02:37

finding the right person for you.

43

: 00:02:39

And that's what we're

going to talk about today.

44

: 00:02:42

What are the benefits to having a mentor?

45

: 00:02:44

I've come up with about 12 but

I'm sure there's probably ones

46

: 00:02:46

that I haven't thought of.

47

: 00:02:48

Certainly there's that

encouragement and support.

48

: 00:02:51

for your own growth and development.

49

: 00:02:53

We do have to be agents

in our own development.

50

: 00:02:56

So having someone there that can support

you with that and get you to think

51

: 00:03:00

about the areas that you might need

to focus on or that you have gaps in

52

: 00:03:04

terms of where you want to be taking

your career can be incredibly useful.

53

: 00:03:08

Similarly, if you're in a leadership

role or you're moving into a leadership

54

: 00:03:11

role, having a mentor to help navigate

the challenges of leadership can be

55

: 00:03:15

incredibly useful as well if they've

already done that walked that walk.

56

: 00:03:20

Mentors can give you feedback on

your behavior or your performance.

57

: 00:03:25

So you're not in a managerial sense,

but in terms of learning, learning

58

: 00:03:28

sense, particularly if they're

working in your organization.

59

: 00:03:32

They can also be a great sounding board

for ideas or for innovation in your area.

60

: 00:03:38

And they can also help

challenge your thinking.

61

: 00:03:41

So get you to look at things

from different perspectives.

62

: 00:03:44

You can learn from the experience

that they have as well.

63

: 00:03:48

, they can be advocates for you within your

organisation or within your industry.

64

: 00:03:53

And they can also connect you with

people who can be useful in your career.

65

: 00:03:57

They can open doors for you.

66

: 00:04:00

And they can also be inspiring.

67

: 00:04:02

They can be a role model that you can

feel shares the same values as you and

68

: 00:04:08

are doing the role that you want to

be doing at some point in your career.

69

: 00:04:12

Plus they can help build your confidence

and your self awareness, which is, key

70

: 00:04:18

in terms of moving your career forward.

71

: 00:04:20

Then they can also be useful

if you're moving into a new

72

: 00:04:23

role or you're moving into a new

field or having a career change.

73

: 00:04:29

I have had two mentors in my career.

74

: 00:04:31

One was when I was in my HR career and

I'd got a new role as an HR manager,

75

: 00:04:37

but it was a standalone HR role.

76

: 00:04:38

I was setting up the HR function.

77

: 00:04:40

I had a mentor who was an HR

director in a sister organization.

78

: 00:04:45

And he was just great at giving me

that support, that space to be able

79

: 00:04:49

to think about the ideas that I had

for the HR function and also how

80

: 00:04:54

to navigate some of the challenges

and the loneliness of being the

81

: 00:04:57

only HR person in the organization.

82

: 00:05:00

So I found it incredibly valuable.

83

: 00:05:03

And then the second time I had a mentor

was when I changed career and became

84

: 00:05:06

a career coach working in a social

enterprise, and I had a peer mentor then.

85

: 00:05:10

So that was another career coach in the

organization who was more experienced

86

: 00:05:15

than me, who really helped me.

87

: 00:05:17

Navigate that transition from being

an HR director to being a career

88

: 00:05:21

coach and starting essentially all

over again with a new field, new

89

: 00:05:25

language, new way of being really.

90

: 00:05:28

And she helped me make that

transition faster, and feel supported

91

: 00:05:33

in a very busy organization.

92

: 00:05:36

I'm a real advocate for mentors,

both formal and informal.

93

: 00:05:40

If you're interested in having a mentor,

the first thing to do is to think about

94

: 00:05:44

what you need from that relationship.

95

: 00:05:46

Why do you want a mentor?

96

: 00:05:48

What do you want to get

from that relationship?

97

: 00:05:50

And it could be a combination of

the things I've just mentioned

98

: 00:05:53

in terms of the benefits.

99

: 00:05:54

You could be looking for

it for, a role model.

100

: 00:05:57

It could career development, filling

the gaps, getting more experience.

101

: 00:06:00

It could be the access to networks and

contacts, or it could be that sounding

102

: 00:06:05

board, challenging ideas, innovation.

103

: 00:06:08

It could be a combination, but being

clear about what you want from

104

: 00:06:11

it will help you then be clearer

about who's going to be the best

105

: 00:06:15

person to give you what you need.

106

: 00:06:18

Which is my second point , which is to

be clear about your mentor's background.

107

: 00:06:22

What do you want them to have in terms

of experience or approach for it to

108

: 00:06:27

be a good productive relationship.

109

: 00:06:30

So thinking about do they

need to be in your industry?

110

: 00:06:33

Do you want them to have

expertise and knowledge in the

111

: 00:06:36

area that you're working in?

112

: 00:06:38

Or actually do you want somebody

different who's going to be working

113

: 00:06:41

in an aligned field or a different

field who can give you a different

114

: 00:06:45

way of thinking and approaching some

of the ideas or your way of working?

115

: 00:06:50

also thinking about the seniority.

116

: 00:06:52

Do they need to be somebody

who is more senior to you?

117

: 00:06:56

And how far from you

do you want them to be?

118

: 00:06:59

Do you want them to be just that one

level up as I had with the HR director?

119

: 00:07:03

Or do you want them to be significantly

further in their career than you?

120

: 00:07:08

Or do you feel actually a peer mentor

is something that you would benefit for?

121

: 00:07:12

Thinking about the background

of your mentor, but also the

122

: 00:07:16

chemistry because chemistry is

always important in a relationship.

123

: 00:07:20

So thinking about what do you respond

best to, what kind of behaviors Do you

124

: 00:07:25

respond to or, values to do they need

to embody the same values that you have

125

: 00:07:32

in order for that relationship to work.

126

: 00:07:34

Being clear about background, but also

about chemistry that you want from the

127

: 00:07:38

mentor to and what you can start to think

about then is, the routes to finding

128

: 00:07:44

your mentor because there are different

routes and you can experiment with them.

129

: 00:07:49

So you can start off by thinking , is

there somebody in my organization?

130

: 00:07:54

Do I know somebody who I've seen and I'm

impressed with, I feel inspired by, that

131

: 00:07:59

they share my values that I would like

to be mentored as I said, maybe doing the

132

: 00:08:03

role that you want to be doing either.

133

: 00:08:05

now or in the near future.

134

: 00:08:08

And then you can think about making a

direct approach to them, or you could

135

: 00:08:13

talk about it with your line manager

as part of your career development.

136

: 00:08:16

You could broach the subject that you'd

like to have a mentor, because your line

137

: 00:08:20

manager will know you, they'll know your

style and your personality, and they'll

138

: 00:08:25

also have contacts in your industry.

139

: 00:08:27

If you are thinking of an industry.

140

: 00:08:29

So they could be the perfect person

to be that bridge to introduce you to

141

: 00:08:33

somebody who could be a mentor for you.

142

: 00:08:36

And similarly, it's worth

investigating if your organization

143

: 00:08:39

has any formal mentor schemes.

144

: 00:08:40

Chatting with your HR department about

whether there are any formal mentor

145

: 00:08:46

opportunities within the organization.

146

: 00:08:49

But then also you've got your own

networks and LinkedIn is also a

147

: 00:08:53

great resource for finding people.

148

: 00:08:56

You can start doing some research

around who your possible mentor could

149

: 00:09:00

be, in terms of either industry,

companies they're working for, jobs

150

: 00:09:04

that they're doing their visibility.

151

: 00:09:07

in your sector.

152

: 00:09:09

And there could be people known

to you or people unknown to you.

153

: 00:09:12

It's doing some research and starting

to notice people who you feel could

154

: 00:09:16

fit the criteria that you have.

155

: 00:09:18

And then there are also trained mentors.

156

: 00:09:21

There are, portals that

link people who want to be a

157

: 00:09:24

mentor with potential mentees.

158

: 00:09:27

And, the advantage to that is that

person's already thought about becoming

159

: 00:09:30

a mentor, they might already have been

a mentor previously, they understand

160

: 00:09:34

how the relationship works, and they are

trained in terms of understanding how to

161

: 00:09:39

provide the right support, ask the right

questions, and get the best out of you.

162

: 00:09:43

You could do some research

around some of those organizations

163

: 00:09:48

that, that link people.

164

: 00:09:50

I've got a couple for you here.

165

: 00:09:51

There's one called mentorsme.

166

: 00:09:54

co.

167

: 00:09:54

uk and that puts small business owners

in touch with business people as mentors.

168

: 00:10:01

And there's also one called mentalset.

169

: 00:10:04

org.

170

: 00:10:04

Uk, which puts independent mentors

with women working in STEM.

171

: 00:10:10

That's a couple of examples, but

there will be others out there as well.

172

: 00:10:13

So that can definitely be

another route to explore.

173

: 00:10:16

But as I said, there's there

are different routes, there's

174

: 00:10:18

formal and informal routes.

175

: 00:10:20

And it's worth just experimenting

and seeing which route, generates

176

: 00:10:24

the best result for you.

177

: 00:10:25

Once you've you've identified your

potential mentor, then you've got to think

178

: 00:10:30

about getting them to say yes to you if

they're not in some sort of formal scheme,

179

: 00:10:35

starting to build your relationship

with them and getting onto their radar

180

: 00:10:39

is the first point of call, . And

again, LinkedIn can be useful at this.

181

: 00:10:43

If they're active on LinkedIn, you can

start by connecting with them,, and

182

: 00:10:47

then, liking and commenting on their

posts so that they start to see you.

183

: 00:10:51

I think there's some stats, which

is something like only 1 percent

184

: 00:10:54

of LinkedIn users are active.

185

: 00:10:56

So if someone comments on your

post, you certainly know about

186

: 00:10:58

it and you're grateful for it.

187

: 00:11:00

So you can start to build that

relationship, or if they're active

188

: 00:11:02

on Twitter, retweeting their tweets

or commenting on the tweet, can

189

: 00:11:07

be another way of making that

connection using social media.

190

: 00:11:11

But you can also look for how active

they are in other ways as well.

191

: 00:11:15

So if they're an active network

and they're attending networking

192

: 00:11:19

events or conferences where you

know that they're going to be there.

193

: 00:11:22

And if you can attend the same

event and find a way to, introduce

194

: 00:11:26

yourself and have an initial chat

with them, you might not choose to

195

: 00:11:29

mention that mentor idea yet to them.

196

: 00:11:32

You want to warm them up and start

to build that relationship with them.

197

: 00:11:36

But certainly getting to know

them and you can also start to

198

: 00:11:39

review, am I an attractive mentee?

199

: 00:11:42

Would I want to mentor me?

200

: 00:11:44

Do I show through my activity in my sector

or my organization or on LinkedIn that

201

: 00:11:50

I'm committed to my own development,

that I'm committed to my learning, that

202

: 00:11:55

I'm committed to my career progression?

203

: 00:11:58

As a mentor you probably always

want to work with somebody who is a

204

: 00:12:01

motivated individual who wants to use

the time and get the most from it.

205

: 00:12:05

So thinking about how you can show that

you are that person is also valuable.

206

: 00:12:10

And then when you've started to build

that relationship with them, you can

207

: 00:12:13

then make an initial approach to

have a conversation with them, or take

208

: 00:12:17

them out for coffee, to meet them to

chat about whether they would do it,

209

: 00:12:21

be amenable to becoming your mentor.

210

: 00:12:24

And let's face it.

211

: 00:12:25

Most people are going to be incredibly

flattered if you approach them

212

: 00:12:28

and ask them so don't shy away

from making that initial approach.

213

: 00:12:31

Often people can't become mentors

because of the time commitment.

214

: 00:12:34

If you can be clear about the time

commitment that you're looking for

215

: 00:12:37

from them, if it's maybe one hour

a month with you coming to them or

216

: 00:12:42

doing it on Zoom, so it's easy for

them that it's, you're going to make

217

: 00:12:46

it easier for them to say yes to you.

218

: 00:12:49

Thinking about what that time

commitment might look like can be can

219

: 00:12:52

be helpful at getting them to say yes.

220

: 00:12:55

And then once, once they've agreed,

which hopefully they will Most

221

: 00:12:58

mental relationships work effectively

if you've got clear boundaries.

222

: 00:13:02

So you can think about setting

up an informal contract with each

223

: 00:13:05

other about how it's going to work.

224

: 00:13:08

And that can include things like

regularity of meetings for how long.

225

: 00:13:12

It can also include Things like

confidentiality, which is really

226

: 00:13:15

important, and the goals that you

have for the mentor relationship.

227

: 00:13:20

And you could even build in

a sort of break clause to it.

228

: 00:13:23

So to review the relationship,

maybe after three months.

229

: 00:13:26

And then if it's not working,

you can both agree to go your

230

: 00:13:28

separate ways, or you can, extend

it and continue the relationship.

231

: 00:13:32

But being upfront and honest about

it is setting up for success.

232

: 00:13:37

If you don't have clear boundaries,

then things can get muddy and people

233

: 00:13:42

can not know what their role is

or how much is expected of them.

234

: 00:13:46

I hope that's been useful to you about

thinking about what you want from a

235

: 00:13:50

mentor and how then you can find a mentor.

236

: 00:13:52

And once you've got them, how you can

make sure that mentor relationship works.

237

: 00:13:57

And of course, you can think

about becoming a mentor yourself

238

: 00:14:00

as well, because that's also

good for your career development.

239

: 00:14:04

There could be more junior employees

or people in your community or, through

240

: 00:14:08

a voluntary capacity, who you could

mentor and also get the benefit of

241

: 00:14:13

being a mentor, as well as looking

for someone who will mentor you.

242

: 00:14:21

Thank you so much for listening

to this episode of the Unstuck

243

: 00:14:25

and Unstoppable podcast.

244

: 00:14:27

I have lots of free resources you

can access on my website, ww.career

245

: 00:14:32

tree coaching.co

246

: 00:14:33

uk, and I'll also put

links in the show notes.

247

: 00:14:37

If you found this episode

helpful, then please subscribe

248

: 00:14:40

so you don't miss the next one.

249

: 00:14:42

And please do share it with a

friend and leave me a review

250

: 00:14:45

and I will personally thank you.

251

: 00:14:48

Remember, you're capable of more

than you know, shine brightly.

252

: 00:14:53

Lead boldly and unlock the

extraordinary potential within you.

253

: 00:14:57

Be unstoppable.