One LinkedIn message changed the trajectory of my career. It wasn’t a response to one of the thousand unsolicited pitches from a vendor’s business development rep (you know the ones I am talking about, right?!), a message to a friend or old co-worker asking about an open role at their company.
It was a message to someone I had respected from afar, but never met.
Leadership isn’t meant to be navigated without a compass. The one LinkedIn message has shaped the career I have, the aspirations I pursue and the person I strive to become. That message was sent to a stranger who became a trusted mentor.
Leaders show up every day with the purpose of making a difference during a time when incredible amounts of change and competing priorities are fighting for your attention. This is especially true in the modern technology landscape and for support leaders.
Technology leaders must navigate how to leverage AI for efficiency and effectiveness to drive better customer experience without negatively impacting employee experience. They must ensure their teams are equipped with the right tools and knowledge and that it is clear what is changing, why it is changing, and what it means for them.
These are real challenges technology leaders face every single day, albeit not always consciously. This doesn’t include budget constraints, senior or executive leadership demands and sometimes a lack of understanding around downstream effects on the way teams operate or the personal development of their people.
There isn’t one answer that any consultant or article can provide that will solve the challenge of navigating all that technology leaders face overnight. To suggest such, would be foolish.
Yet the one leadership habit that has helped me navigate all the above is not a magic formula. It's what that LinkedIn message was all about.
A mentor doesn't give you every answer. They help you verify you're heading in the right direction when the path forward isn't obvious.
What finding a mentor is NOT:
- Once a month or quarter vent session: This is friendship at best, not mentorship.
- Someone who has a title you want and just asking “how can I get to your seat?”: This may be a part of the equation, but your next role shouldn’t be the point.
- Finding your “yes-man” that defaults to hyping up whatever idea or concept you throw out there: A mentor is a cheerleader, but not a cheerleader only or cheerleader first.
- A check box on your agenda because someone said you should do it: Nothing that drives value is treated as just a check box.
What finding a mentor IS:
- Finding someone willing to challenge you: A true mentor challenges you even when you don’t ask for it or know you need it.
- Focused on the personal and professional: You are more than the title you carry. Mentorship should not neglect this reality.
- An intentional relationship that outlasts your current challenge or season: Mentorship isn’t about just where you are today, but about who you are and where you are going next, and then after that.
Mentorships often begin without a formal agreement. They begin with curiosity, consistency and a desire to grow.
Mentorship looks different across seasons of life. There are organic mentors we develop without ever giving the relationship the title. Even if we don’t label a relationship a mentorship, identifying it as such and approaching the relationship intentionally will yield more fruit in our growth than absence of that intention.
If You Don't Have a Mentor Today…
Start with these three questions:
- Who challenges me when I need it?
- Who has navigated the season I'm about to enter?
- Who knows me beyond my job title?
No leader is better alone. Life and leadership are hard. They carry weight and that weight becomes much easier to bear when another set of shoulders helps carry it. The best leaders don't travel the journey alone. They travel with guides who help them stay on course.