I personally think that there are so many reasons to take part in mentorship on both sides – as a mentee and as a mentor. Part of it is the idea of paying it forward – that no one gets to where they are by themselves, and no one is truly “self-made.” We learn from everyone around us and become a mosaic of all the things we’ve learned, and we owe it to others to give them a hand up. The other part is that being a mentor literally helps you as a professional – it helps you practice emotional intelligence and people management and helps you recruit young talent. You’re not just doing charity – you’re also learning a ton.
Whether you’ve been paired with an intern in the office or you’ve met a younger alum from your alma mater that you want help, here’s some advice that I’ve learned through personal experience about being a mentor who can add a bit of value to others. Hope it helps!
- Everyone comes from very different backgrounds. Explain things with lots of context.
- Realize that you might be this person’s first gateway into the business world. There are lots of different types of smart people in the world, and just because someone had more of a liberal arts background or more of a STEM background doesn’t mean one is smarter than the other. Give them opportunities and provide exposure. Provide details around what you’re saying and why it’s important. Don’t just say they should do a task without explaining how and why.
- Patience is key.
- Younger people can be shy and may not ask you outright for things. They might think you’re so cool and accomplished that they don’t want to bother you. (Lots of former interns have told me this, which cracked me up!) You might interpret their shyness as indifference. That’s usually not the case.
- Especially if you’re working with them in the office, take the initiative to ask them how things are going and if they need support.
- Sometimes, you straight up can’t be helpful.
- They might be in a rough patch with the job search or suffering through a really hard class. Just a bit of moral support goes a long way. Let them know that this too shall pass and if they keep working at it, they’ll be okay.
- Help them look at the big picture.
- No single thing matters as much as they’ll think. Help them take a bigger worldview. Every decision seems like the end of the world when you’re in college, but help them realize that life isn’t supposed to be perfect. If they had 1 bad interview somewhere, help them realize that that is a gift and they’ll take those learnings to the next one.
- Buy them a coffee.
- Spend time with them outside the professional context. Learn about them as a person. Learn about their hopes and dreams. Learn about what they want to become. It helps build the bond!
- If they’re curious about your specific line of work, give examples and details.
- They may not even know what to ask. Explain things in a non-pompous, just informative way
- Instead of saying, “Every day is different, I run strategy and marketing for clients.”…
- It’s more helpful if you say something like “Every day is different! On some days, I am in the Facebook platform uploading and monitoring their ad performance. Or before each quarter, I’m in planning meetings with clients to help them strategize the next season’s photoshoots and messaging.”
- Offer to be a professional reference.
- If you’d be willing to vouch for this person, this can go a long way. For young people who don’t have as much experience, this is a really concrete and valuable thing you can offer.
- Help them network.
- If you have any friends in relevant industries or roles that would be willing to chat with your mentee as a favor, try to make the connections for them! That’s another concrete way to add value.
