Find a Mentor and Become a Great Student |
Posted: March 14, 2018 |
Find a Mentor When you come into a company fresh, you need to do two things right off the start:
How do you find a mentor? A great mentor usually wants to help you. They are the people who offer to help you if you need anything. First take some time to find out who the go-to people are in your new digs. Those are where the real stores of knowledge are in your work environment. If you can locate these people and develop a learning relationship with them, you will be on the fast track to find a mentor. You’ll catch on more quickly than the average new worker. Often a work environment is large enough that you can locate several mentors in different areas. That’s perfect. You won’t spend a lot of time bothering just one person. You are looking for the person you were to new employees at your last company. Why Develop a Work Mentor? Why find a mentor? Find a Mentor First off, you don’t know everything. In fact, it’s best to assume you know very little when it comes to a new job, and that’s more-than-likely the truth. It makes sense to humbly learn everything you can when you come into a new position. Mentors show you the ropes, the ins-and- outs, the tricks of the trade, and consequently thrust you forward into success. Second, you need to start developing business relationships and converting them to friendships. When you find a mentor this is a great way to do just that. Some information can be found at https://paperial.com/, but the basic information is described here. Third, you need to recognize that in a very short amount of time, you can learn everything they have learned during their own time with the company. If they have been there for ten years, you learning from them would be like downloading a summary of that experience into your brain. It’s the same reason you should read great books by great writers. As you grow in knowledge, you grow in responsibility and experience. Then you can command a higher income in the marketplace. Don’t Just ask About Success But don’t just ask about their successes, ask about their failures as well. This way you can be careful not to repeat the same mistakes. A Genuine Interest Finally, when you find a mentor, they will want to see you succeed; they will develop a vested interest in your success. Like most professionals, they take great pride in their work and frankly, you are their work. They feel a sense of accomplishment when you succeed. In a way, it’s like watching your own child grow up and succeed. How do I know this? I mentor many people, both inside and outside the work environment. I take extreme pride in how my students do and there is no more enjoyment than seeing someone realize their dreams. In a way, they are a direct reflection of my own capabilities. The New Golden Rule for Teachers and Students Teachers – “Never do for someone what they can do for themselves.” Students - “Never ask someone to do for you what you can and should do for yourself.” That’s pretty obvious, but worth stating. It’s important to your success that you become a model student. How can you do this? By respecting and being considerate of your mentors’ time. Listen intently and make a great effort to never ask the same question twice. Always thank your mentors and acknowledge them when appropriate. Make it your first initiative to figure things out for yourself and only ask for direction when it is absolutely needed. Move on and succeed. In Closing I’ll go out on a limb and say that if you have a passion and power for learning, you can pretty much come into a job with very little knowledge, find a mentor, and succeed in your new position. As you grow and learn and new peers are hired, be sure to build back to the big team selflessly and become a great mentor yourself, passing on your own knowledge. Be a great student, then be a mentor. As a mentor, find great students. It’ll bring the circle to complete and give you a sense of satisfaction in your life.
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