Ask HN: Finding a Mentor

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=247874

by kyro • 18 years ago

8 3 18 years ago

news.ycombinator.com

In many advice articles I've read, one point that most authors try to get across is the importance of finding good mentors. Every time I read a writer's take on that subject, I think to myself 'Yeah, that sounds great, but how the hell do you find one?' If any of you out there have mentors, how did you go about approaching them? In what situation were you in that allowed for that sort of relationship to develop? How were you originally connected, and how did your relationship evolve to a state of mentorship? Also, was there a time in which you realized that the person you were shadowing wasn't the best mentor? How did you move on?

Thanks.

kynikos• 18 years ago

Build relationships with mentors by networking like crazy and showing more senior people in your industry that you have passion for what you're doing, a drive to ask questions, and are placing value on their opinion. Ask a lot of questions and form a mentor relationship with those who are most happy to answer them. Mentorships are informal and are more like a professional friendship than the sort of thing you'd be a part of if you volunteered for Boys and Girls Clubs of America.

Reaching out to family friends and acquaintances whom you admire is a good way to start.

manvsmachine• 18 years ago

Take this with a grain of salt, as I'm currently in the same situation as you? These are just a couple of strategies that I'm trying (YMMV).

Option 1: If you're in college, look through the professors' web pages and look for ones who do research in areas that you are interested in. If you find one that you think would potentially make a good mentor, think of a SMART question to ask. It doesn't have to be anything incredibly difficult or profound; this is to show that 1)you are at least reasonably intelligent and 2)you are interested enough in his field of expertise to involve yourself in it outside of coursework. This is just the beginning of a process; all you're really trying to do at first is get them to think that you're not worthless. Having a little pet project that is relevant could help as it gives you a reason to visit and ask questions every now and then; if you are making significant progress, they will notice and you will hopefully progressively become less of a waste of their time until they warm up to the idea.

Option 2: Join a professional organization (IEEE, ACM, etc). Some metro areas have organizations specific to the local tech industry. I cannot vouch for this personally; I just recently became an ACM member but won't be able to evaluate its influence until the coming school year.

Option 3: If you live in at least a semi-urban area, check for tech meetups or events in your area or even try traveling to a couple. This might not yield a close mentor quickly, but the more people you know, the more there are that can potentially help you.

ScottWhigham• 18 years ago

Aside from the other good advice, one thing I've found is that if you are doing interesting things, interesting people hear about you and are interested in talking with you. So, while you're networking at the tech meeting/etc mentioned, be interesting.

Ask HN: Finding a Mentor

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