On my quest to provide you with valuable information that can help you become better as an individual and/or startup, I’ll be bringing you a much relevant topic that has gone unspoken for a while in the tech space – mentorship.
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Most entrepreneurs and other workers in the not-so-creative space get mentors in order to get to the peak of their career faster. But in the tech space, it is mostly overlooked as more and more people pride themselves in being self-taught and independent in their tech journey. This does not have to be so.
A mentor is not just another individual in the ecosystem that is years ahead of you in your tech field. Rather he is someone that reflects who you aspire to be, a mirror image of an experienced version of you. The search for a mentor is not an easy feat as humans are dynamic and you cannot judge a person based on first contact alone. When selecting a mentor, don’t just go for someone exactly like you, go for someone who exhibits traits you desire and want to possess.
Here are some tips to help you in your journey to finding a mentor:
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Network constantly
It takes people to know people. Attend events and conferences, mingle with other people in the tech space or even non-tech space, learn from them, connect with them on a human level before jumping into your one minute pitch on what you do and what you want. Connect with tech leaders on social media, reach out to them, start a discuss or simply comment under their posts regularly. This way you are forming a rapport with them and over time they would notice you plus you have more ways to connect with them based on their posts apart from your pre-learnt pitch.
Join a community
A community is underrated and many creatives, engineers and developers are realizing the importance of communities and how everyone benefits. If you want to know more about why you need to belong to a community, check my post on Community is a necessity. Be open to helping others as other people will be open to helping you too.
Apply for incubator programs
A tech incubator program is a good way for a startup to hit the ground running. It exposes you to top players in the tech space who will serve as teachers and mentors while also providing the opportunity to learn from other startups in the space too.
Bring value
Finally, bring something to the table. No matter how inexperienced you may be or how small you think you are, there is value you can bring to the table that would be relevant to your mentor. Some mentorships are paid while some are free; whether free or paid, give back to you mentor, find ways to contribute to his own projects or life whether monetarily or through your skills and network.
Friedrich Nietzsche made a beautiful statement that talks about focusing on our journey and avoiding comparison; here is what he said:
“And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music.”
– Friedrich Nietzsche
Not everyone will understand you, your decisions and the path you choose to take, and that’s okay. For real.
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