What is a Mentor and what is Mentorship?

The simplest definition is this: A mentor is a more experienced (typically older [more experienced]) professional in your field who offers you career guidance, advice, and assistance from a real-world point-of-view.[1]

As we prepare to exit our career-breaks, just as we did when we were preparing to exit our careers once upon a time, we must build ourselves a support system both at home and outside of it. A mentor (maybe more than one or two even), is a fantastic addition to that process. A mentor can give you inside information on what is happening in the working world today that you may not be aware of but need to know about while you put together your resume and cover letter, and brush up on your interviewing skills.

Mentorship is about support. It is knowledge and insight from those with shared experiences. It is outside perspective, advice, wisdom, and sometimes, just a sounding board for your own questions... Mentors can be anyone from co-workers and bosses to interns or someone in a Facebook group you've never met face to face, who offers you a new perspective on your career journey.[2]

And, at JobsForHer, we have a bulging BANK of hundreds of MentorsForHer who are on our site specifically because they believe that the need of the hour is to bring women just like you, BACK TO WORK. They see themselves as being key motivators and guides along your journey back to the workplace. They’ve been through the paces and they want to help you navigate those very real hurdles that you're facing by sharing the invaluable information that they possess being on the inside of the companies you are applying to for jobs.

Mentors can give you access to information such as:

The trends in your profession;

Basic practices that must be mastered to reach an expert level in your profession;

Key players in the field you must get to know;

New technology that will impact you in the future;

Prioritize the experiences and competencies that will best equip you for the future;

Insight into trends in the industry;

Major competitors to research and study;

Companies to watch that are “best in class”;

Breakthroughs that need to be made;

Breakdowns that are limiting the industry;

Journals and/or books to read;

Leaders to follow;

Associations to join;

Explain the "ins and outs" of project management as well as day-to-day expediting;

Point out the critical factors in making a presentation – software, engagement, length, etc.;

Speed up the proposal making process;

Coach you and answer questions about new technology tools;

Advise you on new systems to learn or explore;

Help you with technical breakdowns;

Choose work situations that “fit” with your interests and social relationships; and

Legitimize your desire to have a full and happy life, outside of work[3]

In this exhaustive list of benefits, lessons, advice, and tips, there is not one place where one could say that ONLY a mentor who had taken a career break would be able to advise you on it.

Feedback is a gift, and oftentimes the feedback from mentors is the most real you will ever receive. At every job and at every juncture in my career, a formal mentor or informal peer mentor has given me the "non-sugarcoated" version of feedback I may not have received otherwise. To this day, I remember these feedback conversations as turning points in my career — where I took the feedback, put it to work and started seeing the results.[4]

Now, doesn’t that sound like something YOU should be racing to your computer to check out on our website RIGHT NOW?

When we host webinars by these industry leaders, people at the top of their game in a variety of fields, representing a smorgasbord of skillsets, advisors and counsellors who have “been there, done that” and want to share their learnings with you, so that you don’t have to reinvent the wheel – we hope that you will make the time in your weekly calendar to attend them. They are usually an hour, and sometimes so enjoyable that they extend to a little over that with all the questions being asked by the women who attend and the mentor hosting trying to answer them all.

They are so far FREE to attend and we strongly urge you to make these free webinars by our MentorsForHer an integral part of your second career journey and process. You will NOT regret it.

So, go to our MentorForHer page by clicking below, TODAY. Start following the hundreds of mentors we have, who are listed there, and set your second career journey on fire!