Get in the Fast Lane: Accelerate Food & Beverage Career Growth with a Mentor

June 11, 2018 in Career and Job Search Tips

 

 

Looking for better ways to move to the top of your field, land a promotion or earn a raise?

Here’s a hint: don’t go solo!

From time to time all of us (especially early career professionals) need a little guidance from a trusted advisor. A mentor can be an invaluable partner in creating career momentum and fast-tracking your professional growth.

Here are a few of the ways a mentor can help:

  • Plan your career track. What’s your goal for your career? A mentor can work with you to create a clear career path, implement the steps toward achieving your goals, and monitor your progress. Along the way, they can help keep your professional development plans aligned with the needs of your organization.
  • Facilitate networking. Navigating organizational and industry “politics” can be extremely challenging, but fostering strong alliances with senior leaders is essential to career growth. A mentor can introduce you to executives within and outside your organization who can be invaluable learning resources and powerful connections.
  • Advise you in sticky situations. Make a mistake at work? In a career jam? Have a question you can’t bring to your boss? A professional mentor is the perfect person in whom to confide. Chances are, they’ve been in a similar situation or know someone who has, so you can learn from their (and their colleagues’) experience. Even if they don’t have the perfect solution to a challenge you face, they can provide sound, unbiased advice to help you make the best decision for your career.
  • Get the inside scoop. If you’re interviewing for a promotion or tackling a challenging new project, your mentor can be a great source of informal, yet critical, knowledge. Rely on their first-hand experience to learn things you won’t find in any training manual.
  • Provide encouragement. All of us need a little positive feedback on occasion, but peers and direct managers don’t always provide it. A mentor is a professional cheerleader who will always: be in your corner; help you move past workplace insecurities; and boost your confidence when you need it most.

Ready to accelerate your food & beverage career growth?

Read this earlier post on creating momentum in your career when you’ve hit a plateau. Then, connect with a leading food industry headhunter: Kinsa Group. Our team of food industry executive recruiters can help you find the right opportunity by:

  • providing access to unadvertised positions;
  • evaluating your strengths, weaknesses and interests – to facilitate your long-term career development;
  • representing you confidentially to potential employers;
  • assessing your job offers to identify the best options for your career growth;
  • supplying the career guidance, resume feedback and interview assistance you need.

Search professional food & beverage jobs here or submit your resume to Kinsa today.