American Inno

I’m so sorry, GenZ, but lovingly, mentoring just does not work the way you think. That’s what I sighed to myself today when I saw new research saying a whopping 83% of GenZers want a mentor, calling mentorship “crucial” to their careers. https://lnkd.in/ef57xk8d Now, they’re not wrong about that last part. Mentors can accelerate your learning, connect you with people you should know, and, perhaps best of all, prevent you from making some boneheaded mistakes along the way. But in my experience teaching GenZ, too many have bought into a fantasyland version of mentorship, sold to them largely by career “experts” who must have never spent a day in real business. Mentors, these fabulists claim, are out there for the taking. Your job is to just go find them! If only! In reality, mentors are not found, they are earned. You look around, see someone you really admire at work, and then do everything in your power to prove your intelligence, curiosity, grind, grit, and impact on the organization. It is then, and only then, that you can dare to ask, “Might you invest your time and energy in me?” That’s how it actually works. Further, you should know a mentor will never – and should never be – your knight in shining armor. Another fantasy! Mentors are busy; they have their own lives and careers. And frankly, it’s very risky to assume one person can be your career-everything. Indeed, as I will stress at The Business Journals Bizwomen #MentoringMonday event on February 26, forget the single-mentor model. Everyone should be a mentor to you. Even if it’s from afar. Think of how much more you will learn. Look, I have been helped incalculably by mentors along the way, and I love being a mentor myself. Indeed, it is one of the greatest joys of my life. But GenZ, let’s keep it real. It’s not wrong to want a mentor, but like all good things in life, it’s very hard work – on both sides. Sign up for Mentoring Monday: https://lnkd.in/eE8pjRyf