Nobody gets good alone.
You grow in conversation and gain clarity by explaining. You learn faster when someone reflects something back to you.
So if you want to grow, do both: mentor someone and be mentored.
The Power of Mentoring Others
You don’t need to be perfect to help someone. You just need to be a few steps ahead. Someone is trying to navigate a challenge you’ve already lived, and you can shorten their learning curve.
Not by giving lectures, but by sharing how you handled it, what didn’t work, and what you wish someone had told you.
Mentoring isn’t about being right. It’s about showing up, being honest, and offering a clean mirror.
When you explain your thinking to someone else, something unexpected happens: you start hearing your own thoughts more clearly. You see how much you’ve learned. You get sharper too.
What Good Mentoring Looks Like
Ask before you advise. “What have you tried so far?” and “What’s your read on the situation?” Help you understand their perspective before sharing yours.
Share stories, not rules. “When I faced something similar, here’s what I learned…” Stories stick better than abstract advice and give context that pure instruction never can.
Reflect what you hear. “It sounds like you’re torn between speed and quality. Is that right?” Help them see their own thinking and recognize patterns they might miss.
Normalize the struggle. “Everyone finds stakeholder management hard at first.” Remove the shame from not knowing and create space for honest learning.
The Need to Be Mentored
You don’t outgrow the need for feedback and reflection. For someone who’s not in your story and can see things you can’t.
The right mentor won’t tell you what to do. They’ll ask better questions and offer perspective. Sometimes all you need is one clean sentence at the right moment, and everything shifts.
That’s what mentorship does: it interrupts the loop in your head, introduces clarity, and makes space for new thinking.
How to Find Mentors and Mentees
For mentoring others, look for people asking good questions. Recent hires, career changers, or anyone facing challenges you’ve navigated. They don’t have to be junior to you, just newer to something you understand.
For being mentored, notice who handles situations well that you struggle with. Who has skills you want to develop? Who seems to navigate politics or pressure gracefully?
Start small: “Can I get your thoughts on something?” or “I’d love to learn how you approach this type of situation.”
Making It Work
Be consistent. Regular check-ins work better than random conversations. Even twenty minutes monthly builds momentum that sporadic longer sessions never achieve.
Come prepared. Bring specific questions or situations. “I’m dealing with a stakeholder who…” is better than “How do I get better at communication?” Concrete challenges create concrete learning.
Follow through. Share what happened after you tried their suggestion. This closes the loop and builds the relationship while showing you value their investment in your growth.
Stay curious. The best mentoring relationships are mutual. Even when you’re the “mentor,” stay open to learning from their perspective. Fresh eyes often see what experience has made invisible.
The Unexpected Benefits
For mentors, you clarify your own thinking, build leadership skills, and often learn fresh perspectives from people with different backgrounds. Teaching forces you to articulate what you know and discover what you’ve forgotten.
For mentees, you accelerate learning, avoid common pitfalls, and build relationships with people invested in your growth. Good mentors become advocates who open doors you didn’t even know existed.
And for both, you create a network of people who understand your work and can offer support when you need it.
The Long-Term View
The people you mentor often become your strongest professional relationships. They remember who helped them early and return the favor later. Investment in their growth becomes investment in your future network.
The people who mentor you model what good leadership looks like and often become advocates for your advancement. They see your potential before you fully recognize it yourself.
The Bottom Line
You don’t need permission or formal programs. Mentoring starts with curiosity and grows with trust.
Share what you know. Ask what you don’t. Be someone who brings clarity and invites it.
That’s how we all get better. Together.