One of the biggest ultimate benefits of mentorship is greater job satisfaction. When you feel confident in what you do and where you’re going, you’ll be happier at work and contribute to a more positive work environment.
What is Mentorship?
A mentoring relationship connects a senior professional leader with someone in a newer stage in their career to encourage their personal and professional development. Mentors and their mentees meet regularly to exchange ideas and discuss goals and progress.
5 Benefits of Being a Mentee
Let’s look at five specific ways being a mentee can enhance your career — and your life.
1. Enhance your confidence.
Regular touchpoints with a seasoned professional who supports and encourages you professionally can increase your confidence at work exponentially. With this experienced sounding board, you’ll gain a better understanding of the skillsets you need and how to get them.
2. Get career pathing advice.
If your current career isn’t satisfying, or if you know you’re ready for the next step after your current role, a mentor can be an excellent resource during that transition. Whether it’s a full career change or looking at creative ways to scale or move laterally on the career ladder, look to your mentors for advice.
3. Receive feedback on challenging work situations.
Need ideas of how to better manage up to improve your relationship with your boss? Have a gossipy colleague making day-to-day life tough for you or your team? An experienced mentor has probably seen it all, and they’ll be able to give you concrete action steps to proceed.
4. Develop stronger leadership and interpersonal skills.
Making the transition from college student to 9–5er or from individual contributor to manager can take some skills you didn’t know you didn’t have. Your mentor will be able to advise you on what those skills are and how best to acquire and practice them.
5. Extend your professional network.
Creating professional relationships with senior leaders in your profession can be a challenge. That’s one of the reasons mentorship is so beneficial. Mentors can become long-term contacts who may be able to advocate for you in the future.
YWA Connect
YWA Connect is the Young Women’s Alliance’s mentoring program, created to connect members with established leaders in the community. YWA is empowering the next generation of female leaders, and YWA Connect is one piece of how that happens.
Founded in 2012, this exclusive program has grown from five initial Connect pairs to a total of more than 70 Mentors and Mentees last program year. This year, Connect consultant Janice Omadeke will help pair mentor and mentee applicants. Participants will have access to some of the most successful and prominent women in the Austin community and a dedicated Facebook group with articles, book suggestions, and discussions from other mentor/mentee pairings.
Mentor and mentee applications for YWA Connect 2020–2021 close on Tuesday, August 25, so apply now!
