Apochromatik's Mentoring Month Roundup

January was National Mentoring Month.  Mentoring can be one of the most beneficial tools in your career toolbox, but it can be intimidating to find a mentor, and it can be easy to give up if you sense a prospective mentor or mentee isn’t excited about working with you.  We addressed aspects of mentoring in depth on the blog during January in the Apochromatik Guide to Mentoring, and provided the Apochromatik Mentor Finder: The Five Step Method to Find Your Mentor, a free tool you can download to start working on finding your mentors.

In Part I, we covered the differences between mentors, sponsors, friends, and coaches. The differences between mentors and sponsors and how to find and work with them were also covered by Ivy Exec in a piece quoting Apochromatik’s Amy M. Gardner.  

Differing expectations between mentors and mentees can cause relationships to fall apart.  In Part II, we shared the eight things mentors and mentees want.

Formal mentoring programs often get a bad rap.  But even if they haven’t been designed thoughtfully (something we can help with), as Part III covered, there’s just one thing you need to do to make the most of the opportunity they present.

How do you know whether you’re ready to be a mentor to someone else?  Part IV answered this question.  

In Part V, we addressed the three types of mentors every professional needs.

Our Videos of the Week also addressed mentoring.  Tim Ferriss talked about creating a great mentor relationship, Chip Conley discussed intergenerational mutual mentorship, and we shared a free, on-demand webinar on how to build and utilize meaningful mentoring relationships.  (The webinar features Apochromatik’s Amy M. Gardner and is hosted by the Northwestern Alumni Association but no alumni affiliation is necessary to register and watch.)

The entire series on mentoring was inspired by a reader, AK, who asked us to address mentoring.  If you have questions or suggestions for future posts, please reach out at any time.