I’ve been thinking a lot about mentoring lately. I’ve had at least two great mentors in my professional life. These two people gave me confidence through a palpable belief in my abilities. They not only helped me think through whether I would turn left or right at career crossroads, but helped me see alternative routes that were even better suited to my goals. I was close and connected to them in a professional yet personal way unique to mentorship, and they were available to me regardless of where I lived or what work I was (or wasn’t) pursuing. 

Although I’m not beyond needing to make difficult decisions in my own career, I am now at a place where people turn to me for mentorship. This leads me to appreciate my mentors even more.

To those of you early in your careers trying to see the best next step toward your goals, or just the next right thing (to quote Anna from Frozen 2), I hope you have the comfort of someone to talk with, someone with experience, perspective, and your interests in mind. If you do, I hope you appreciate them and know that they are busy people with their own difficult decisions at hand, despite their tendency to make you feel otherwise. 

To those of you yet to connect with a mentor, keep your eyes open for an organically comforting relationship to emerge with a current or former supervisor, a colleague a bit further along than you, or someone you look up to in professional circles. Appreciate them and thank them often. Feeling like you have someone in your corner who can see ahead of you is reassuring and empowering. And look out for opportunities to pay the benefits forward to people looking to you for guidance.

Your mentors will not always be with you, but their voices, their insightful questions, and their perspectives will become a part of you that you can reference when needed. What a valuable gift that is.