Want to take your skills and your career to the next level?  A mentoring relationship can do just that.  Discover how to find the right mentor and create an effective mentoring relationship.

After listening to this episode, you'll understand:

  • Why mentoring is such a powerful tool for career growth
  • How to find the right mentor for you
  • What to do to start a mentoring relationship
  • When a mentoring relationship should end

SHOW NOTES

An effective mentoring relationship can help you to rapidly develop your skills and send your career skyrocketing.  The trick is to find a mentor that’s right for you and start that relationship correctly.

A good mentor guides the mentee through overcoming obstacles and helps the mentee to enhance their skills.

In the safe environment built by the mentor / mentee relationship, you can try out new things you’re struggling with without fear of failure.  Learning and experimenting in this safe space helps the mentee to build confidence.

The mentee learns and builds skills in an iterative fashion.  The iterative learning helps the mentee to build a solid foundation upon which additional skills can be added.

 

Finding a Mentor

The first step in finding a mentor is to recognize that you have skills or areas in which you’d like to grow and having the courage to ask for assistance.

Finding a mentor can be as easy as speaking with your manager or applying for a mentoring program you may have at work.

If you feel that a mentor at work wouldn’t meet your needs or if you’re unable to find a mentor at your workplace, you can seek a mentor outside your organization.  Having a network outside of work can be a big benefit in finding a mentor.

Professional organizations such as the IIBA or PMI often have local chapter meetings and are a great source for growing your network and finding mentors.

 

Listen to the full episode to find out more about how to find the right mentor and start a mentoring relationship.

 

YOUR HOMEWORK

Start looking within your organization and in professional organizations for people with the skills and experience that can help you grow.  Once you find someone in your network, ask for mentoring support from that person.

To prepare for your personal development or mentoring and to focus your conversations, perform a personal SWOT analysis on yourself.

 Links mentioned in this episode:

Doug Goldberg, CBAP

Doug Goldberg, CBAP

DougGtheBA.com

Doug Goldberg is a Certified Business Analysis Professional (CBAP) with more than 23 years of experience. His background includes graphic design, printing, proofreading, typesetting, corporate communications, commercial kitchens, software support, online help development and training, J2EE/Java development, quality tester, and a few other sundry experiences.  Doug mentors other business analysts and has a blog at DougGtheBA.com.

 

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