Mentorships can be an incredibly beneficial tool for newer businesspeople to have in their arsenal. These relationships can be essential to your success as a business professional, as mentorships can teach you to hone the skills necessary to become a great leader. Below are some of the ways that you can benefit from having a professional mentorship.
Having a mentor gives you a jump start on your professional development.
Mentorship is one of the best ways to help keep your eye on the prize. A mentor is like having a built-in support system, allowing you to focus on what’s important to your career development. This can lead to an overall increase in your confidence and your ability to achieve goals and can give you the tools necessary to make long-lasting networking connections. Not only that, but your mentor’s feedback can help you grow personally as well as professionally.
Having a mentor holds you accountable
One of the main things you do with your mentor is outline the goals you want to achieve. Maybe it’s to become an executive or to start your own business one day. Either way, you will still have a lot of development necessary before you become CEO. A mentor’s job is to help the mentee pinpoint the steps necessary to help them achieve their goals. Without a carefully laid plan, mentees can often become overwhelmed by the prospect of winging it. A mentor keeping the mentee accountable helps provide the necessary motivation for a mentee to succeed.
Having a mentor hones your leadership skills
Leadership skills are a necessary part of being a successful business professional. Unfortunately, these skills aren’t something that you’re born with. They have to be cultivated over time– luckily, honing skills such as listening, communication, and giving and receiving feedback is an integral part of a mentoring relationship. The mentor teaches these skills, as well as other soft skills such as self-awareness, adaptability, teamwork, collaboration, and verbal communication. Simply having one-on-one conversations with your mentor can help you learn the soft skills necessary to grow in your career.
Having a mentor opens the door to guidance and knowledge
Because mentors have more experience in the field they’re working in, they can provide a good amount of insight that mentees wouldn’t have gotten otherwise. Their experience can help mentees solve difficult problems or help them learn new things. Mentees can look to mentors as a crucial outlet when they’re having certain challenges in their careers.