One of the most needed and desired traits of a new engineer and engineering manager is having someone to talk to about the job.  How do I do this—what does this mean—why do we do it this way?  These are all questions that any new employee asks, either one who graduated from school, or a new employee joining the firm in a lateral position.  An ideal way to get answers to these questions is to find a mentor—a colleague who may work in the same company, same industry or same locale who you can ask questions of in a non-threatening, nonjudgmental manner.

HOW TO FIND A MENTOR 

Finding a mentor is not as hard as it may seem!  Essentially, look and ask!  It is just that simple.  OK, let’s go slow and explore this a little.

If you are new to a company, either a fresh college graduate or a new lateral employee who is seasoned, having a mentor is valuable.  Carefully look around the firm and see who is highly respected, seems to be the individual that everyone asks or everyone suggests that you visit with if you have a question.  This probably will take about 3-4 months once you start your job.  Look around and see which individual(s) are always the ones who seem to be “in the know” about everything.  That individual is probably a great candidate to ask if he/she will help mentor you.

Do not be intimidated by race, gender, educational level, technical competence, company position when seeking a mentor.  Recognize and understand that the more senior an individual is in any company, the less time he/she has—recall that time is the only fungible commodity that senior leaders have.  You may ask a senior leader to help mentor you and he/she denies the request because of time—there is only 24 hours in each day—no matter how you count!  The senior leader may have 1-2 mentees already and cannot effectively and efficiently take on anymore.  Fair enough—today may not be the day for this individual to help—maybe another time would be a good time to ask.

With technology burgeoning in today’s workplace—there is nothing wrong with asking a new graduate engineer to serve as your mentor, especially if you don’t have a rich technology background or did not/do not want to learn new automated systems.  I am not the least bit afraid to ask someone 40 years younger than I to mentor me if I don’t understand a computer program or computer formula.  Often, the answer is, “Let me do it for you!”  My response always is, “No, show me how to do it, so that I understand and can do it next time.”  Then I will do the task several times to make sure I understand it and can do it next time.

Most people are always willing to help—be it a new graduate or someone in the C suite.  Be sensitive to their time commitments.  Do not be afraid to ask—taking your resume with you and asking for a 30 minute meeting works.  Never ask for more than 30 minutes—if they give you 60 minutes—that is a win for you.

HOW TO BE A MENTOR

Being a mentor is easy—it is.  You are being asked to help someone gain traction in a new company, a new job, a new industry.  Be ready, willing and able to ask and answer many questions each time you are together.

How often are you together?  I have some mentees that we meet 2-3X a year, normally over a good dinner.  We talk about many matters; job, family, travel, career goals—whatever the mentee wishes to discuss.  Money management usually comes up—how do I invest my money, should I buy a new car, even though I bought a Porsche 2 years ago? (NO is my answer here!)

I have other mentees that I meet 1x a week for breakfast.  Everyone pays their own way and we talk about their business, how the business is doing and what can be improved.  Here, both of these mentees always caucus the day before and kind of go over what it is that they wish to discuss and wonder what I will say!  They usually figure out exactly what my counsel is before our meeting!!

Often, mentoring is being a helpful, non-judgmental listening ear.

HOW TO USE A MENTOR 

Once you have a mentor and established a strong relationship with the mentor, don’t be afraid to ask for help in your career and professional growth.  It may be something as simple as an introduction to another individual, a banker, an attorney, another industry leader.  Now, you have to judiciously think about what the ask is, but don’t be afraid to ask.

Honesty is key in all dealing and relationships.  Many mentors will be happy to give you a name or place a call for you if they believe in what you are seeking.  Again, judicious asking is the key.  You do not want to ask every time for something—think before you ask is key here.

I know a lot of individuals—in town, in the state, region, nationally and in industry.  I met and learned these individuals from many years of hard work.  However, I am always willing to make a phone call if the individual I am mentoring can gain value from a contact.  The converse is also true—my contact may be needing/seeking someone for a certain task.  Never fear asking for help.