7 minute read
One on One
Agood mentor is one of the most valuable career assets. Having someone to coach, advise, and advocate for you can help you grow as a professional at a quick and thorough pace. But every individual only has so many skills and strong suits. One person can only open up so many doors for you. While some mentors may provide technical advice related to your job, others might offer strategic guidance related to your career path. As we’ll see below, some mentors won’t even work in the same company or industry as you. According to the panelists of a recent discussion at the BEYA STEM Conference, every professional should have five mentors, each performing a distinct role.
Below, we’ll share our speakers’ thoughts on the five types of mentors and why everyone should have one of each.
The Master of Craft
The “master of the craft” is a mentor who has worked in the same (or at least a very similar) role as you and understands the problems you encounter in your job. They may or may not work at the same company as you. They’re in your mentor roster to help you overcome those challenges and achieve technical success in your field.
As Adrienne Somerville of the Naval Air Systems Command said, “This is where we naturally go when we think about mentors. A ‘master of craft’ is someone in your organization who is technically sound not only in the area where you work but also where you want to go. Wherever you see yourself currently and in the future, it’s ideal to want to have a diverse portfolio of mentors who round you out not only where you are but, more importantly, where you can be.”
The Champion of Your Cause
Your “champion” should be a person working in a higher-up position than you within your company. This is the person who will mention your name in meetings in order to get you access to new opportunities. Renee Reynolds of Naval Sea Systems Command says, “The ‘champion’ is somebody who can advocate for you to put you into positions of influence. They’re the person who’s screaming your name in rooms where it matters.”
The Anchor
Your “anchor” is someone who can help you build character as you move upwards in your career. Instead of helping you become a better professional, they help you to be a better person (which, in turn, will make you a better professional). This individual does not have to work in the same job as you, or even the same industry. As long as you find their guidance valuable, they’ll make a great anchor.
Greg Dunn says, “This could be a personal trainer, a coach, someone from church…this is a person whose character you value. Tap into this category to make sure that while you’re trying to become the best engineer or the best leader, your character is aligned to that.”
The Co-Pilot
A “co-pilot” is a mentor who is going through similar struggles to you at the same time you’re going through them. The goal here is to have someone you can bounce ideas off of, providing mutual guidance as you grow and progress together. It helps if this person has a similar job to you or works at the same company, but that doesn’t have to be the case.
Greg Dunn of Lockheed Martin Corporation says, “The ‘co-pilot’ is one of your peers, maybe a classmate from school or someone in the industry who has a similar background as you. Maybe they have strengths in some areas you don’t, but it’s really someone who can understand where you’re coming from and help you navigate that field.”
Clockwise from left: Felicia Burks, US Air Force, Renee Reynolds, Naval Sea System Command, Adrienne Sommerville, Talent & Technical Solutions, Inc., Greg Dunn, Lockheed Martin Corporation
The Reverse Mentor
Mentorship doesn’t just happen from the top down; you’d be surprised how much your senior colleagues will learn from you. The final mentor you need in your roster is a “reverse mentor” who enjoys and appreciates your input. Adrienne Somerville points out that this mentorship might overlap with one of your other mentorships. “It’s very important when you think about selecting a mentor to interview some candidates because you want to be able to see not only what you’re going to gain from the relationship but where you’re going to be able to add value,” she says. S
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NETWORKING ETIQUETTE 101
featuring Amber Hurt of The Adulting Queen
WWe all know professional networking is important for career growth and progression. People you know can open up all kinds of doors to opportunity, from landing your first job to gaining promotions with more influence and responsibility. At every stage of your life, you need mentors, advocates, and coaches to help you grow and progress. But sometimes networking isn’t as easy as it sounds.
Yes, we know that we’re supposed to go to conferences and maintain a LinkedIn profile and check in with our contacts every few months to keep that network strong. But what if that feels awkward? How do you start those initial networking conversations anyway? At the 2022 BEYA STEM Global Competitive Conference held in February, Amber Hurt of The Adulting Queen was generous enough to join us on Zoom to answer some frequently asked networking etiquette questions. Here’s what she had to say:
Amber Hurt of the Adulting Queen
Q: How do you start conversations in networking situations? What do you say to get the conversation started?
A: “This is definitely scary, especially with online networking, and we’re online way more now than we have been in the past. The key is to find something to connect with the person about. Whether you’ve checked out their LinkedIn, or you met them at a [past] conference, or you just know of them from somebody else, use that as a conversation starter.
Also, if you’re reaching [out] to them, you should have a reason. If you just saw them and thought it would be cool to talk to them on LinkedIn but you don’t have a purpose, then it can be a little more difficult to start the conversation. Going into the conversation discussing what interested you about them and how you found them is a great starting point.”
Q: How do you follow up when you have nothing to offer and don’t need anything but want to maintain the connection?
A: “This is a great question. Again, it comes back to what your purpose was in deciding to reach out to them in the first place. For me, when I went to my first conference as an undergraduate student, what I did was take the business cards I got from everyone and wrote down where I met them because I would not have remembered where I met all of those people and what we discussed.”
I initially reached out just saying, ‘Hey, we met at the conference. This is what I’m doing now; this is what I’m hoping to do. Let’s stay in touch.”
Q: So I should get business cards? Aren’t they outdated?
A: “Things have changed so much since the pandemic that they aren’t as important. I still do find them valuable, but it depends on what you’re doing and where you’re at in your career. When I was a student, I had them because we were going to tons of conferences, but now I don’t use my business cards nearly as much. I definitely don’t think they’re bad; I think it’s more of a personal preference, although they definitely make it easier to give your contact information out in passing, versus telling people to add you on LinkedIn. They just might not remember your name.”
Q: What if they don’t respond—or stop responding—to my messages?
A: “Some of [the people I reached out to after conferences] I’ve probably not talked to ever again since then, and that’s okay. Don’t worry if the conversation dies out, especially if you’re communicating through email. There shouldn’t be any hard feelings about that.
When you connect with people on LinkedIn, sometimes you’re able to restart that conversation either when you’re in a different place or you see that they’re in a different place and you’re interested in talking to them about it.” S
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