Do you have a mentor in mind for yourself? Would you describe them as someone who is similar to you and your style? It is common to look for people who are further ahead in their career with a strong personal brand, but in many ways they are just like us.
Choosing a mentor who was exactly like me is what happened in my career. I didn’t think about it that way at the time. I just saw this female leader as someone who was smart and well-connected. She had reached the ranks of senior leadership, so I assumed she must be able to share insights and advice with me. That was all true and she did help me a lot.
However, when I shared my mentoring experience with another female VP a few years later, her view on mentors was very different. She told me that she looks for mentors who are the opposite of her style and gender. Her intention was to challenge herself with different perspectives so that she could grow and develop faster. That conversation stuck with me and gave me different things to consider when I chose my next mentor.
Every person has to choose what is right for them and the good thing is you don’t have to select just one mentor. The simple questions to ask yourself when selecting a mentor are: “what do I want to learn from them and how can they support me in the best way?”