Most people who are great in their fields have a mentor, someone who knows the ropes, who has considerable experience and gives them advice on how to succeed. If you would like to excel in your craft, having a mentor to guide you is valuable.

Before you concern yourself with how to choose a mentor, you need to realize that people who can serve as your mentors will be asking themselves why they would spend time mentoring you. Therefore, you need to demonstrate your enthusiasm for your craft. Your prospective mentor has to see that you are indeed willing to learn from him or her.

There are many kinds of mentors, as many as there are professions and industries. Whether you are looking for a business advisor or someone to help hone your artistic skill, knowing how to choose a mentor is crucial to your success. Remember that this person will serve as your guide and his or her knowledge and expertise should match those that you wish to master.

A mentor can be a former employer, a friend, a relative, or a complete stranger who is an expert in your craft, line of work or business. As long as this expert is someone you trust and respect, then you can form a mentoring relationship with him or her. In some formal arrangements, the mentor may receive payment for his or her consulting services. There is in fact an industry in mentoring or coaching and you need to be certain that the mentor or advisor is not just after the fees.

If you own a business, you can either find someone in your organization to become a mentor to others or you can get someone from the outside. If you plan to hire a mentor, meet your prospect or prospects personally before you start working with them so you can build rapport and find out their mentoring approach. You need to be comfortable with the mentor/s and how they work. You want someone who can adjust their mentoring style to suit the needs of your business or your employees.

Research your prospect’s background thoroughly to make sure there are no hidden agendas or conflicting interests. Find out the mentor’s qualifications as well as experience in mentoring in your specific industry. Think ahead when you are choosing a mentor in terms of what you or your company needs to learn in the near future. This way, you can make sure that the mentor can assist even as your employees move onto new roles. If a transition will be implemented soon, it may be best to select a mentor to coach employees on their future work.

In addition, determine whether mentoring is indeed the solution in order to meet your business objectives.  For example, if productivity or quality of work is poor will bringing in a mentor to coach employees truly resolve the problem? Perhaps, there are other solutions that are more appropriate.

Whether you are in a business or non-business environment, you should make your goals clear to your mentor and your mentor must fully understand what you are aiming for if he or she were to help you develop and succeed.

As you search for a mentor, keep in mind that a mentor should serve only as a guide albeit an important guide. This means you should not depend entirely on them to resolve issues or make the decisions. Feel free to explore your own ideas. They can give you all the advice you need but in the end, you should decide for yourself because it is your business or career. A good mentor should encourage you to do so.