Undergraduate Blog / Career Development

The Value of a Mentor

More than a month has passed since I began my internship. It has been an unforgettable experience. Not only have I learned valuable lessons in the business, marketing, and lifestyle fields that I could never learn from a class or textbook, I have learned the value of a mentor.

I have had the pleasure of shadowing my boss throughout his business days, peeking into how the mind of a successful serial entrepreneur works. Such a lesson is extremely prized, as it truly cannot be found anywhere besides the mind of a human being who has had the experience of living and breathing the entrepreneurial lifestyle. I have learned how to become more comfortable with failure as a part of the entrepreneurial journey, how to roll with the bumps and punches, and how to realize what’s crucial to your venture so as to keep it alive despite all of the inevitable changes it’ll endure through the entrepreneurial process.

My mentor taught me that, whether you start your own business post college or join an existing business, it is always important to remember what you hold most dear to your heart, what you truly value, so as to ensure you don’t compromise those values in your professional endeavors.

It is key to ask for help, especially from those who are your senior and have knowledge and experience to offer you. Mentors are a great tool to have in your arsenal, to provide you with experiential and insider knowledge, as well as to be a resource to help you with advice, through struggles, and to be a positive role model in your professional life. Just remember to thank them once in a while. Most mentors just want to see you grow and be successful, but it never hurts to give them a shout out when you’re accepting that award in the future.

In most business situations, we seek the value – the dollar sign, the numbers, the percentages – to tell us if a venture is worth undertaking, if a product or service is worth the money. In the world of internships, the value is priceless. The connections you forge, the help you receive, the mentors you meet, hold no price tag.