How find a mentor

FACT FILE
Finding the right mentor
So how do you find the right mentor?
First figure out what you want in a mentor, what you think he or she can teach you.
At Sun, the protégés in the program are asked to prepare a list of 15 names of people on their mentor wish list and write one paragraph explaining the specific allure of each mentor. Dickinson says this forces the protégé to research the mentor and hone in on exactly what they want out of the relationship.
Most of the female executives I’ve interviewed in recent years told me they had to approach their mentor on their own and establish a relationship. In my book “From the Sandbox to the Corner Office,” Mary Callahan Erdoes, CEO of JPMorgan Private Bank, describes how she’d pull her chair over to her mentor’s desk and watch him work.
“The problem people get into most is when they are too proud to ask for help or too proud to show the public what they don’t know — to show vulnerability and weakness," she says.
Find cheerleaders, advises Lynette Lewis, author of "Climbing the Ladder in Stilettos."
“One of the things I find when talking about the concept of personal branding, is a lot of time women are reluctant to be their own advocates,” she says. “Most of us were taught if you walk into a room full of people we don’t talk about ourselves. So one of the reasons you need a mentor is they’re willing to talk about you. I encourage women to find a couple of people willing to talk about them and you can do it for them in return.”
While you should definitely take advantage of whatever your company offers in the shape of formal mentoring, women who don’t work for major corporations or who are striving to be entrepreneurs should consider looking for mentors in their communities — at their local chambers, women’s groups or even places of worship. Or just approach successful business leaders you might want to emulate and learn from. If they’re put off by the request you’re probably better off without them as mentors.
There are also national organizations such as MentorNet, which offers women an online mentoring network in the science and engineering fields. MENTTIUM Corp. provides mentoring services for companies and individuals.