Breaking Barriers: Strategies for Building Meaningful Mentorship Relationships

A couple of years ago, while I was living in Denver, I wanted to buy a house. And so I started job hunting at some point, NASDAQ headhunted me, and my friend Will loaned me a suit for the initial interview. I got hired by NASDAQ, but after a few months, I was utterly stressed out. I hated the job. I couldn't get anything done. I didn't get the results I wanted. I just wasn't happy.

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Another friend of mine at the time, Justin, was a remote software developer and showed me what it was like to work remotely, so that's something that I really aspired to. Because of all these struggles and because he saw how hard I worked, my friend will, who was obviously also my mentor, set me up with his company, where I was able to work remotely. And this made all the difference in the world. I'm still with this company today. I love my team. I love the product we're working on, and just that one key relationship has helped me so much.

Why You Need a Mentor

People in the tech industry, especially those who are younger, benefit significantly from having a mentor. A mentor can offer guidance, support, and advice on navigating the challenges and opportunities that present themselves in a tech career. Mentors have a wealth of knowledge and experience, such as advice or technical skills, industry trends, and best practices that help you avoid the pain they did and help advance your career much faster.

Mentors can also provide professional support by giving you feedback and advice during challenging periods, the tech industry can be stressful and isolating. Having a mentor with experience in navigating these obstacles can help you overcome them much more quickly than if you were at it alone. Finally, mentorship opens up the door to networking with people in the tech industry.

Network With People in the Tech Industry

Networking is a fantastic way to advance your career in the tech industry because our industry is so fast-paced and constantly evolving, and building a relationship with others provides many opportunities. You should focus on your professional network through various channels to build those relationships.

One way to develop a network is by attending meetups, workshops, and conferences. These places provide an opportunity to meet others, learn about new technologies and gain insights into trends. Another important networking tool is a platform such as LinkedIn. These platforms enable you to showcase your skills, your experiences, and your work history, and they will let you connect with professionals who may be able to provide you with new leads.

One major thing to remember is that networking isn't just about making new connections but also about maintaining and nurturing them. So make sure to contribute to relationships by always asking if you can help and always following through so that you build trust.

Ask for Help

As someone in tech, it can be easy to feel like you need to have all the answers or to want to find them yourself. I know what it's like. The truth is that while this mentality has probably gotten you to where you are today, it may also be holding you back from advancing your career. If you're looking for mentorship, don't be afraid to ask for help. This might mean reaching out to someone you admire on LinkedIn or asking someone with more experience at work.

When you ask for help, be specific about what you're looking for and emphasize listening more than you do talking. Mentorship is a two-way street. You need to be willing to put effort into building a relationship with someone, and they need to be ready to invest time and energy in you. By being proactive and asking for help, you demonstrate a willingness to put in the effort and attract those that are willing to reciprocate.

Analyze Your Company

One of the most important things to consider when looking for a mentor is finding someone whose career trajectory matches the journey you'd like to take. This comes down to finding someone who is experienced in the areas you want to succeed in. To begin your search, identify the specific skills that you want to develop. Then look for people in your network or within your company who excel at these skills.

Once you've identified potential mentors, ask them questions that will allow you to discover what past roles they held, the projects they worked on, and any courses or education they pursued. When you reach out to potential mentors, be sure to clearly explain your goals and how their experience closely aligns with what you're hoping for.

Not everyone will want to devote their time to helping you, but the vast majority of people will consider this act flattering. I'm telling you this from personal experience.

Conclusion

Here are the best tricks that I've learned when it comes to building mentorships. Again, it is so vital to have it. Even if you don't have a mentor, you'll probably do fine in your career. But the truth is that we all realize who you know really matters. Having a mentor has a significant impact on how quickly your career advances.

If I had never met my friend Will, I would never have had someone who would have loaned me a suit. And second, someone who set me up with a connection to work for a company that I've been with for almost four years, and that's a lot in the tech industry. If I hadn't met my friend, Justin, I never would have had my eyes open to the flexibility of remote life. And the same story can be told for many other friends. It is so important to build these relationships and to be willing to invest effort into maintaining them and helping them out as well because people will always want to reciprocate.