Find mentors to help you learn

- Here's a secret, don't tell anyone. Older folks like me enjoy sharing their knowledge and wisdom. We've built up decades of experience and inside information, but no one asks us to share it. Life, and your work life in particular, will be so much easier if you have old hands guiding you through the process, pointing out the things you want to do, and sometimes even more importantly, the things and people you want to avoid. As you're beginning your journey in the working world or in a new industry, you want to actively search for people to mentor you. This journey requires one quality above all others, and that quality is humility. You need to be honest with yourself that you have a lot to learn. Not knowing is not a sign of weakness. Pretending you do when you don't, and faking it, can be your undoing. Notice I said people, plural. Just as you are no expert, yet, don't expect to find one mentor who's some sort of magician with all the answers. A smarter strategy is to first of all, create what I call your very own personal board of directors. They can provide advice in their particular area of expertise. I have one for my business. Stu is my agent, and he negotiates my deals. Barbara handles my taxes. Marissa coaches me about relationships. And Richard is my attorney. Next, realize you can find mentors in the most surprising places. Be open to that. Your boss could be your mentor. A former teacher or professor. A colleague who works at a competitor. What, you may ask, could all of them possibly have in common? The answer is that they have a different perspective and/or they've been there before. You want people who can show you the lay of the land, whether that's your department or company or industry. If you listen to them, your mentors will save you time and stress, and warn you about what and whom to avoid, and how to deal with the difficult people you can't avoid. And lastly, compassion has been defined as taking a step backward and putting your arm around the shoulder of the other person because you've been there before. Let your mentors do that for you. Having someone mentor you may actually be a gift to them. I know from personal experience that it's flattering to find someone talented and passionate who wants my guidance, and respects my accomplishments and what I've learned in my career. Freddy is a good example. He held a bachelor's degree in philosophy, and I hired him to work for me. A couple of years later he decided to pursue a master's degree in pubic policy from a very prestigious university. We had developed a mentor/mentee relationship, and he asked if I would write him a letter of recommendation. I was happy to do so, and he got accepted. I was proud of him. That's the kind of gift you can give to your mentors. Everyone gets to win.