Each of us needs a relationship with a respected, experienced colleague to help us spot pitfalls and encourage us to take on new challenges. The mentor is the person who believes in your talents and skills, who offers suggestions to strengthen them, and who has a way of helping you transform obstacles into opportunities. Your mentor must be someone with integrity, whose professional accomplishments you admire and wish to emulate to some degree. You should not be shy about asking someone to play a mentor role, but always remember to leave your target a graceful way to decline. At a minimum, you will be paying someone a valued compliment, and eventually you will receive an affirmative response to your request.
Mentors are particularly important during a job search, which is essentially a lonely enterprise.
Start a Support Group Facilitators at career roundtables frequently urge participants to form support groups to help each other search for the right position. These job seekers are generally at similar stages in their careers. They meet on a regular basis to exchange information, critique resumes, and conduct mock interviews. They provide the support and encouragement so necessary to persevere with a job search. For each job opening there are usually a number of candidates who can do the job.