Mentors Can Change Your Future
Mentors Can Change Your Future
By: Michael Walton
April 9, 2018
How satisfying is your career? Do you have career goals? Are you getting the support and encouragement necessary to succeed? 
For most of us, working is a lifelong adventure. Enjoying what you do improves creativity, attitude, and the drive to learn. Fortunately, people around you can help you succeed. Leaders and mentors are everywhere, take time to find them and allow them to help you grow.
A mentor will learn your strengths and weaknesses then help guide you to success. A mentor is someone you can talk with, trust, and they will care about your success. Mentors will feel successful when you succeed. Of course, the mentor can only guide you, you have to have the drive to learn, fail fast, and keep working until you succeed.
Early in my career, I was interested in the work that other people were doing. The financial and time commitments required to take classes and learn scared me. Fortunately, my employer encouraged me to challenge myself and pursue further education. Some great mentors helped me and Knowledge improved my confidence and inspired me to continue learning. Mentors stepped in and added practical experience to what I learned. Knowledge and experience led to increased responsibilities and additional training opportunities.
Leaders and mentors provide support and encouragement, which make your experiences positive and motivational.
Leaders recognize natural talents, provide educational opportunities, and support on the job training. A leader will set goals to push you out of your comfort zone and force you try new things. Each success will expanded your knowledge, experience, and build confidence. Their support provides positive feedback and encouragement because your success is important to them.
Mentors take your knowledge to the next level. They take time to teach, demonstrate, and monitor your progress. Like a big brother or sister: always there to listen and support while allowing you to work on your own. Positive reinforcement after each failed attempt builds confidence to try again. Remember: Fail fast and move on, take what you learn and keep going.
Mentors and leaders freely invest their time to help others succeed, which can be the difference between an enjoyable career and just working. Enjoying what you do is key to continued improvement. So, what happens if you find you do not enjoy the work? Mentors and leaders can help you find what you do enjoy.
We are accountable for our own success; being afraid to try something new leads to wasted opportunities. Each of us must look at our careers and ask ourselves; do I enjoy what I do? Is this what I want to do for the next 5 or even 10 year? What classes will hone my skills? Are there areas of my job where I can improve? Who can mentor me?
Benefits of education are amazing. Anything worth having is worth working for. Completing a class or practicing a new skill will give you a sense of accomplishment. The benefits of education reach beyond the next semester, stay focused on your long-term goals. Experience builds confidence, which allows you to enjoy what you do.
Facilities management has seen tremendous change over the years. New technologies have kept me engaged and energized. Leaders encouraged me to learn and develop new skills. Building automation systems (BAS), energy management, sustainability, geothermal systems, and solar power improve how we manage facilities. Business continuity and emergency management joined the facilities management core competencies, which brought new opportunities for development and growth.
What excites you about changes in your area of expertise? Allow changes to energize your desire to learn. Take advantage of opportunities so you can grow and develop. Lead the way: learn new skills, stay in front of technology, and set the example for people starting their career. Be a mentor and energize your career by helping. You may even lead a training initiative at your company.
Your skills can help your community. Participate in volunteer organizations, take part in community activities, and find a place that makes you happy and proud. Joining a fire department and rescue squad helped me get involved in my community. With additional training, I became an instructor and passed my knowledge to others. Fortunately, my employer encouraged community involvement.
Once you find what you enjoy, invest the time to learn and develop skills and abilities. Professional growth helps you stay engaged in your own career. Changes in your field should energize you because it offers new and exciting opportunities. You are never too far along in your career to have a mentor. Respect leaders and mentors; take advantage of the time they devote to you. Pay it forward by being a mentor and helping others succeed. People you help will always remember you. Be proud of what you do, smile, have fun, and develop others so they can succeed.
Michael Walton
Walton-Professionals, LLC
Michael Walton is a Director of Facilities with more than 30 years of experience in facilities management, safety, emergency management, and business continuity. Helping others is very rewarding as their careers provide them happiness. Michael has helped companies streamline processes and design new processes to support facilities management.
