I’ve always loved nudging people to figure out their goals and dreams; encouraging them to make it all happen. I’m sure you’ve done the same. There’s nothing more exhilarating than seeing someone connect with that spark that ignites their work and life. So when I recently started getting requests to mentor people who have seen my work here, you can imagine how excited and humbled I was that they would ask.
What Makes A Good Mentor?
The good news for me is that this has been a fantastic year. By looking up from my desk long enough to reach out to share and connect with others, all sorts of career possibilities suddenly exploded for me. But all of that good stuff also means my free time has sort of evaporated. Given that, I’m trying to figure out what sort of help I’d be able to offer, and it got me thinking about what and how I learned from my own mentor.
My Mentor
When I started as a freelance instructional designer my first client ended up becoming a fantastic mentor just by being who she is. There was no official mentoring relationship – I just took it all in. This is how she helped me:
- Reviews & Critiques: Every time she reviewed my work and made it clear that, for example, the placement of every element was important down to the very last pixel – I took it in and that became my standard.
- Observation: From project management to design work to professional involvement, just by observing how she operated, I learned.
- Encouragement & Support: She thought I was talented, but more than that she told me I was and always made sure I was paid as much as possible. She didn’t have to do either of those things, but her generosity and support made me work even harder to do the best work I possibly could.
Individual vs. Crowdsourced Mentoring
A lot of the things I got from her individually can be obtained in professional communities online now. It’s not identical, but I’ve grown enormously in the past few years by taking advantage of the knowledge, advice, and opportunities for growth provided by the generous members of the Articulate community. Need a review or critique? Want to observe how others work and what they do? Need encouragement, suggestions, or advice? Want quick and effective ways to build your skills and portfolio? It’s all there in the community, and those are the same things I got from my own mentor.
Can you really crowdsource something like mentoring? Check out the thoughts of Danielle Russell. Her “crowd” is her network of connections – and she’s doing what we’re all doing: Getting involved, gathering information, making decisions, and taking action to build her career.
What Are You Looking For In A Mentor?
If you were looking for an individual e-learning mentor, what would be most helpful and what would that relationship look like? Could turning to an involved professional community for support meet any of those same needs? What do you think?
Great post, Jackie! I am always flattered when I get queries about mentoring…maybe one day I’ll be able to do it, but right now I need to focus my efforts on small business ownership, paying the mortgage, and putting kibble on the table!
However, I will say that my best mentoring has also happened from my freelance clients – within my last permanent role, one of the greatest struggles I experienced was the lack of feedback and criticism I received; no one is perfect, and there’s always something to revise, so I found it hard to believe that there could be so little feedback provided. I have always thrived in an environment where feedback is provided as it gives me opportunities to learn from mistakes and grow as a professional…thankfully I chose the right industry. I feel like most of my experiences have been shaped by the feedback my clients have provided, and I have been able to streamline a lot of my business processes with their critiques.
Thanks so much for your feedback, Ashley! Your and my time issues are exactly the same. When you’re in growth mode you’re going all-out. I can’t imagine anything better than being a great mentor, but doing it in earnest may have to come later. That’s how I ended up writing this – I was trying to think of what I have the time to do right now, and coaching someone about where to go and what to do in the Articulate community – depending on their needs – was the most valuable thing I could think of.
So funny that your clients give you the best feedback, too. I guess it’s a good trade-off since we give them great value in return. :)
Hi Jackie! I think you can crowd source a mentor and it doesn’t need to be a formal type thing like you might have in a face-to-face setting. The ‘Show Your Work’ approach works really well to receive feedback from others and also provide it to them.
I’ve received some great feedback and ideas from the few weekly challenges I’ve participated in and also writing my own blog. Both of these things have allowed me to ‘meet’ some wonderful people like yourself working in eLearning that I wouldn’t have if I tried to do it on my own.
Ashley, I too get concerned when there is very little feedback and I find myself thinking – have you actually looked at the storyboard/module thoroughly!
Hi Matt! Thanks so much for adding your thoughts! Fantastic point about the value of showing your work – both for the show-er and the show-ee. Not only is it great for getting feedback, but if you’re trying to learn by observation (which we all are!) it’s the ultimate open window for looking into someone else’s workshop.
I’ve learned a ton from the weekly challenges – through getting feedback, observing and learning from everyone else’s contributions, getting to know terrific peers like you and Ashley, and getting a technical and design workout each week. There’s no class I could take – at any price – that would give me that kind of value – and they’re free! I’m just so grateful they’re there.
Hi Jackie!
Thanks again for this post! As I mentioned to you just the other day…you have sparked my interest in mentoring through crowdsourcing! Thanks for giving me the nudge I needed…you are awesome!
Thank you so much, Laura! I think you’re going to be overwhelmed (in the best possible way) by how much help you’ll find. And if there’s any area in particular where you think I might be able to point you in the right direction to find even more support or info – please don’t hesitate to drop me a line. (You’re awesome too, you know!!)
Jackie, love your take on using the weekly challenges of the Articulate community as the best education available for free.
Thanks, Barbara! I can’t think of a better place to actively practice, share, learn, grow, and get to know others in the field – all from the comfort of your own home or office or dorm. It’s the best!