Mentoring and Being Mentored Critical for Positive Career Growth

Most people have a circle of friends and family where they can seek advice about career and personal issues. But we also have the innate human characteristic of wanting to avoid conflict. One very important aspect of having a formal mentor relationship is the regular follow-up to monitor progress on confronting challenges and seizing opportunities. We may hear good advice, but as Dante wrote in the 12th Century: the secret to getting things done is to act. What we now label as proactivity. A mentor can be a game-changer in the complex bureaucracy of large corporations. How can a fresh recruit out of college, or any new employee for that matter, possibly navigate her way through the labyrinth of a large company? Ideally, a mentor is someone who has been there, done that, who can share their experiences on how to get things done and communicate effectively within the business. The mentor can also learn valuable lessons on the "perception" of younger workers and can help with retaining the transient Millennials. Studies show there is a strong correlation between a positive mentoring experience and increased productivity, job satisfaction, and employee retention. A business leader and mentor from a Fortune 1000 company recently noted, "it has helped me to see the obstacles we inadvertently put in the way of people's development." The younger generation, who grew up in the digital world, can mentor more mature workers on understanding and using technology. They can also give insight on how to market products/services to the growing Millennial population. Knowledge transfer is critical to the success of organizations, as mature workers leave the workforce. Good working relationships between older and younger workers can ensure that institutional knowledge is passed along. Intergenerational synergy is powerful, as is all diversity in a workforce, and mentoring can go a long way toward understanding generational differences. Personally, I prefer "organic" versus formal mentoring programs. Typically, the best mentor is someone right in front of you. Someone you have gone to for assistance, who you respect and trust, who has gone out of his or her way to help you, and shows genuine interest. In study after study, mentors report that "it just feels good to assist people at critical stages in their careers." A boss may turn out to be an excellent mentor, but it is more advantageous, I believe, to have someone not in your chain-of-command to give truly impartial advice. Outside of your organization can even be better, but you must recognize the commitment you are asking from a potential mentor and it may prove to be more of a challenge to schedule meetings than with someone within your company. Mentoring is much more effective if it occurs with regularity, to monitor career progress. Many companies have set up formal programs realizing the tremendous value mentoring has on their organizations. In the absence of being able to find a trusted mentor on your own and if your company doesn't have a formal program, talk to your human resources department about setting one up. Also, become a mentor - play it forward - for a friend, or colleague. Mentoring can be remarkably rewarding and everyone benefits. Richard S. Pearson is the Author of 5 Necessary Skills to Keep Your Career on Track 2nd Edition, featuring social media and networking to find and keep jobs, now available on Amazon. He has held vice-president positions with four multibillion dollar travel industry companies and three Internet early stage companies. He has a BA degree from Regis University in Organizational Development. His experience has given him a unique perspective on how to navigate the organizational structures of both large and small companies. He has hired and trained hundreds of employees from frontline salespeople to vice presidents, and coached many through their careers. He is currently working on facilitating the large increase of travel between the US and China, which is taking place. http://amzn.to/mRaxuk