Mentorship, what does that mean to you? How has it affected your career? Mentorships allow for guidance and an opportunity for growth for mentees. Becoming a mentor takes time and dedication, as you will be pouring into someone who has less experience than you related to your profession. Mentors typically commit to spending a few hours per month to listen and provide guidance to a mentee. This guidance allows for the mentee to avoid some of the mistakes that more seasoned professionals have made; the sharing of professional experience and insight for navigating a particular arena.

As we look back on our careers, a lot of us recognize that we are where we are, and we are who we are, because someone took the time to pour their time, knowledge, and expertise into us.  Regardless of your profession, or years in your careers, the benefits of a mentor are priceless. As you begin a career, a new job, or just need guidance on pursuing your education, there is a great benefit of having someone who has walked in your shoes and navigated the path before you. For most of us, the path that we walk has been paved by someone else. And those that happen to create a new path forward create opportunity for those coming up behind them.

Mentorship relationships are invaluable and necessary. Here, we discuss our own experiences as mentors and mentees in the legal profession in hopes of providing a guiding path for attorneys and law students alike looking for such opportunities, and highlighting the importance of these relationships: