Reimagine your support crew
Programming note: I’m interviewing Ken Collins from the land of AI later this week for our December Navigator of the Month. I’ll be asking Ken about how he’s approached a product career that is constantly evolving. If you have any questions for him, send them my way!
And don’t forget, as a supporting subscriber you can join our upcoming webinars. I’m really excited for you to meet our next guests, including the man behind McCafé, a professor who left academia after 24 years to start a nonprofit and a tech transplant who describes her career switch as “leaping over the waterfall”:
Mentorship in many forms
Ah, mentors. Those wise guides with a deep understanding of your strengths and your needs, who have the knowledge to responsibly direct you toward ultimate professional success.
Except when they don’t. Don’t understand you, don’t have time, don’t get where you’re trying to go or how to get there.
It stings when your mentor doesn’t offer the support you need. And yet, many of us pin our hopes on one or two guides at a time for our career journey.
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You and your gift recipient will enjoy exclusive access to monthly Q&As with other professionals, an instant download of the Map Your Career River worksheet, special offers and posts in your inbox every Monday. Happy holidays!
Part of the problem is focusing on who we can adopt as a mentor means we neglect what we need at a particular moment for our careers. Depending on where you currently are in navigating your career, though, it may be more helpful to look at what action you need right now and then figure out who can help you move forward. Here’s how:
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If you’re thinking about leaving behind what you know to try a new role, company or industry, you’ll need someone to give you concrete support to move into a new direction. Laura Krantz McNeill put it like this in her advice on making a career pivot:
Really you just need to find one person who gets what you’re trying to do in the Venn diagram between where you are and where you want to go. Explain to them why you want to make a change, and ask them if there’s anyone else you should talk to.
Think about who can give you the push you need to get started, whether that’s a 30-minute coffee chat or an introduction to some useful contacts. This could be an existing mentor or perhaps someone whose work you admire. Let them know what you’d find helpful at this moment to get you going.
Unlike a push, a nudge is often needed when an insight helps you adjust your expectations or actions to shift where you’re heading. I often find nudges come from my colleagues or friends when I let them know I’m confused about where I should be going. Ask those who know you for advice when you feel like you need to try a different tack.
After Dustin Block was laid off, he followed the advice of Liz Horowitz on The Best Advice Show to start reaching out to people and tell them what you’re thinking about doing next.
“Tell your partner, tell your friend, tell your parents, tell whoever. And it’s amazing what starts to open up … you definitely get unstuck.”
This is where ongoing support becomes critical.
Ashley Anthony at nonprofit mRelief was fortunate to receive ongoing support from her organization in the form of coaching when she became a manager. This guidance helped her shift her expectations for what success would mean in her career.
“I don’t have to push myself in ways that don’t feel authentic to me.”
It’s not enough to get one-time advice that sets you in a new direction. Instead, find a mentor, a sponsor, or a coach who can keep checking in with you to make sure you’re following your internal compass toward fulfillment.
I keep a list called “co-conspirators” of people I want to work with, and I’ll reach out to them to see if we can team up. Just like tributaries join rivers to make them stronger, we can find people interested in the same type of work to learn and grow together.
Often it seems networking advice is focused on nabbing people who can get you your next job. Not only is that a bit icky and transactional, but it ignores that we spend more of our working life performing in a role, not seeking a new one. Two of the best guides to networking I’ve seen are Adam Grant’s Give and Take and The Startup of You by LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman and Ben Casnocha. Both emphasize that investing in relationships over time from a place of generosity will yield more meaningful results than lanyard-scanning at networking events.
Could your current work use some additional energy and insights? If you’re paddling along, do your future self a favor and invest now in the relationships that will push you farther than you could go alone.
Happy navigating,
Bridget
Links:
️ Register for upcoming Navigator Q&As
Get a gift subscription to Explore Your Career River
Riding Your River: Unlock your next career move with this key question
Beyond the murky middle: 5 career pivot tips
Life after layoff: ‘It’s amazing what starts to open up’
The Most Effective Way To Find Your Next Job with Liz Horowitz (The Best Advice Show)
A Guide to Mentors, Sponsors, and Coaches (Harvard Business Review)
Give and Take: Why Helping Others Drives Our Success
The Startup of You: Adapt, Take Risks, Grow Your Network, and Transform Your Career
Images via Canva.
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