If there’s one thing in this life I advocate for (besides adequate mental health services, donating blood and societal change), it’s having a mentor.

I have had quite a few mentors over the past 3 years, and they have all taught me different lessons. I’ve had one from the tech sector that helped me analyse the importance of data and metrics (not an easy task considering I’m a humanities lover to the core), and a Civil Service mentor who taught me more about the importance of having a positive mindset than the work in her sector. I’ve also had a UCAS* mentor that helped with my university application process, who taught me a range life skills.

An important aspect of mentorship I have noticed is diversity. I may be a slight hypocrite here as I’ve only had one male mentor (shoutout to you Mark) but having that range of age, life stage, gender and sector is crucial. Often, the ones you have nothing in common with often end up being the ones you learn the most from.

Investing in your mind will never have a price limit; but as a young adult who has recently discovered the price of travel without student discounts, it will have to for now 😐. One of the best parts of a mentorship is that they are generally free — most feel a reward via the act of altruism, rather than monetary gain. With that being said comes the golden rule of mentorship — do not waste their time. Come to your meetings prepared with the work they have set you and a list of questions you’d like to ask. I’ll be the first to tell you this discipline did not come immediately; I’ve definitely rocked up to a few sessions with nothing but hope that they’ve prepared a topic — but this should never become a habit.

All in all, mentorship is amazing and no matter who you are and how far you are in your career, you can benefit from having a mentor. You’ll develop a range of critical thinking skills, a new world perspective and if you’re lucky, a long-life friendship.

You can read the full blog here.

*UCAS –  All UK based university applications are made through the University and Colleges Admissions Service (“UCAS”).

Shea joins the Global Learning London team as a Project Assistant, supporting on a host of work including co-facilitating on our Anti-Racist Curriculum and supporting our digital marketing.