Cheering Section

Manager, Leader, Mentor, Coach; all four can help you advance your career. This week, we take a look at each role and how each one can help you in your quest for a promotion.

At the most simplistic level, the roles can be summarized as:

A Manager tells you want to do.
A Leader enables you so that you can do it.
A Mentor shows you how to do it.
And a coach changes the way you think about it.

Your manager is responsible for what projects you work on. It's important to have a manager that recognizes both your strengths as well as what skills you need to develop. If they take these things into account when giving you assignments, they can ensure that you are successful while still growing as an individual. And, of course, they are ultimately the decider on whether you are considered for a promotion. With that much control over your activities, you don't need to be best friends with your manager, but you certainly need to build a positive relationship with them.

A leader is someone who inspires and motivates the team. In Episode 016 - What Does It Mean To Be A Leader, I described a leader as someone who enables their team to do MORE. A good leader can remove impediments and provide you with the tools and resources you need to complete your tasks. Leadership can come from people in official leadership positions or from peers that lead informally. Regardless of the source, a good leader will put you in the best position for success.

A mentor is someone -- sometimes on your team, but not always -- that acts as a teacher. Episode 003 - Mentoring goes into types of mentoring in more detail When you are learning a new skill or working in a new company, having a mentor to show you the ropes can help you learn skills faster but also the way to apply those skills in line with how the company values them.

The final role that can help you advance your career is a coach. The role of the coach is to challenge your thinking and get you to look at things from a new angle or with a different mindset. Where leaders and mentors are focused on the shorter term tasks, coaches are looking towards the horizon. A good coach will help you set long term career goals and help you put a plan in place to achieve those goals. Where the mentor is focused on skills and tools that address your current assignments, a coach will focus on skills and tools that will help you grow as an individual. Often, a coach will come from outside of your organization where they will not be restricted in their thinking by the limits and attitudes of everyone else.

If you're lucky, you may find one person that serves all four roles, but that will be rare. More often than not, you will need to find two or three different people to fill them. Managers and Leaders, by their nature, will be people within your team or organization. Mentors and coaches may come from anywhere -- within your company or even externally.

When looking for a mentor or coach, there are several places that you can look.

First, look to more senior or longer tenured members of your team. Even if they are not interested or if they don't feel like a good fit for you specifically, you can leverage their connections to find other candidates.
Another source for finding mentors and coaches is to reach out to your network and professional organizations. Ask your personal connections if there is someone that can and will mentor you or if they know someone who will. If you have access to a formal network such as an alumni network of your school or an industry association, they will usually have matching services that will put you in touch with potential mentors and coaches.
Lastly, look towards professionals. There are professional coaches that can help with various aspects of your professional career. Whether technical skills or soft skills, look for a coach that is experienced in the areas that you wish to develop.

Managers, Leaders, Mentors, and Coaches. Find people who will be on your side and can help you get ahead. Having several people in your cheering section will give you more confidence and support as you continue your career.

In the Managing A Career podcast, I cover short-form topics to challenge your thinking about career advancement. If you are interested in professional coaching, reach out to me via the contact form on the ManagingACareer.com website. I will schedule an introductory session where we can talk about your coaching goals. If we're a good fit, we can set up regular coaching or I can refer you to other coaches I know that may suit your needs.

Are you looking for a career coach? If you reach out to me via the contact form, I will arrange an introductory session where we can talk about your career goals and how I can help. If we're a good fit, we can schedule regular coaching sessions.