January is National Mentoring Month, which has me thinking who my mentors are both personally and professionally. Growing up, it was pretty clear who the most influential people were in my life. Besides my parents, there were dance teachers, sports coaches and older siblings. And, I can’t forget my favorite athletes, entertainers and celebrities. As an adult, I am lucky to say the OG’s remain in my life, but the playing field has been leveled so to speak and many of my mentors are now also my peers.
As the old adage goes, people come into your life for a reason, a season and a lifetime. Figuring out who these people are and what you can take away from knowing each of them is how you grow. Below are three types of mentors in the agency world to watch for.
The Veteran
Your colleagues who have been in the industry the longest are the obvious mentors who can walk you through anything from posting a simple calendar listing to orchestrating a national multi-tiered communications campaign. They have the wisdom and the experience and better yet, their stories of the old days like when physical newspapers were the hottest ticket off the printing press and martinis were sipped with clients during extended lunch hours, that can expand your horizons and build upon your developing skillsets. These types of mentors are special as they expose you to new ways of thinking and push you to be better until one day you take their jobs (just kidding!!!). But seriously, veterans aren’t necessarily the head honchos. They aren’t always the most vocal or flashy with their success. Rather, they are the ones who learned firsthand through trial and error and worked really hard to get where they are today and can teach and make us all better. Equally important, veterans also help newer people to bridge the gap between the individual and organization, which helps boost employee morale, productivity and retention.
The Youngest
The youngest is a less obvious choice as this person likely has the least experience in public relations, let alone an office setting. However, the youngest usually has the freshest eyes and the most creative spirit. I don’t believe in the saying that you can’t teach an old dog new tricks. The youngest learned different things in school. The youngest probably just hustled at multiple internships and absorbed knowledge from each of those experiences to bring to the table. Not to stereotype, because this never applied to me when I was the youngest, but younger people on the team can typically navigate social media better and have more insight into how the digital world is reshaping our profession. Perhaps one of the best things younger people have to offer is the example they set – to be humble, alert and work hard for what you want. For these reasons and more, companies are starting reverse mentoring programs.
The Internet
Years ago, I wrote a blog post to answer the question many of my friends still ask me to this day: Is being a publicist as glamorous as it looks on TV (insert facepalm emoji)? In the post, I broke down some of the different hats that publicists wear. In this industry, knowledge is power and that is where the internet comes in. If I need to figure out how to market and give personality to a brand, I start by searching its competitors. If I need to handle a crisis, I look for examples of how other organizations handled and mishandled similar situations. If I’m looking for ideas for how to activate participants or need inspiration for a punchy headline, I find events and even memes and Pinterest boards that inspire me. And, if I simply don’t know how to do something, I search for materials to read or watch to learn how to do it or I find a conference or workshop that will help.
Whatever the field and stage of life you are in, mentors are a reason you are here. Be sure to thank them this month and pay it forward to others!
