It’s a good thing that mentorship culture is growing — especially in tech and creative areas of work.(I used to be in tech for years before moving on and becoming a freelance creative, so I watch both these areas with much interest). But like everything else in life, good things always have a flip side to them.
Sometimes I worry about mentorship becoming a “trendy” thing to do, rather than the important or useful process it can really be. I hope that we can avoid at least some of the pitfalls of becoming mentors/mentees out of FOMO or brand-chasing mindset. Nothing wrong with putting ourselves out there. We must. And we must continue to show ourselves and our work wherever it matters. But if that’s all it is, then, giving/receiving mentoring might become less powerful, less useful as a personal growth and community fostering tool. We may unconsciously foster a culture of “mentor-shopping” rather than properly helping ourselves and others to understand the underlying problems and doing the actual work which requires time and real connections with people who care on both sides…
Just something for both mentors/mentees to keep in mind while we continue to do the useful work.
