Mentorship

As a young student at Howard University in the early 60”s, not sure of what I wanted to study, I was intrigued by the description of a course: Introduction to Business. I signed up. Little did I realize then but that one decision changed the course of my life. Not only did it help me decide my major field of study but it connected me with a very important person who became my mentor - the professor who taught the course.

I define a mentor as “someone who has checked out the minefield and can point out the mines before you step on them”. Mentor relationships can be formal or informal depending on the needs of the persons involved. In my case it was informal –no hard, fast rules. A true mentor helps in guiding your development, but not for personal gain. You can choose a mentor or someone may choose you (with your approval, of course) because they see a need that you may not recognize. In my case, the professor chose me though I’m not sure what he saw missing in my development. My guess is that he saw me as a “fish out of water” an older freshman student (22 versus 18) trying to find my way in an environment which was totally new to me. He helped guide me in the selection of my courses, hired me as his student assistant and influenced me to pursue my graduate study at none other than the Harvard Business School. During the course of a career, a person may have multiple mentors at different stages as the career develops and changes. As you experience changes and growth in your career don’t be reluctant to seek out a mentor if no one seeks you out. Most people are honored to be asked for guidance. If you do have a mentor, be sure you pass it forward by becoming one yourself.