September 2026
From the Publisher
Hello September!
This month’s advice is to get yourself a mentor. Someone who truly sees you and what you’re trying to achieve. Someone who has walked the path you’re on and is willing to gently impart their knowledge and wisdom to you. That person will be a true gift to you.
You know how sometimes you want to talk to family and friends for hour upon hour about your latest project, and pause as you notice their eyes start to glaze over? Well, your mentor will enthusiastically chat about your shared field. They know all the lingo and have been around that particular block a few times already.
Your mentor should be someone in your field whom you admire and respect. Whose values align with yours, someone you can learn from, someone whose career and professional qualities you want to model yourself on.
There are mentorship programs at universities and professional organizations, sure, but I think the best mentors are the ones you choose for yourself once you've begun your professional life.
And don’t worry if you approach someone and they decline. One of my most humbling moments was when an author I greatly admired about 15 years ahead of me in experience and accomplishment declined when I asked her to be my mentor. It stung. But perhaps mentorship needs to happen more organically. Ultimately, she wasn’t the right person for me.
If you find the right one, over the years, your mentor will be instrumental in shaping your career, sometimes behind the scenes without you even realizing it.
It’s good to be good at what you do. But it’s priceless when trusted colleagues recognize your talent and hard work and are willing to go to bat for you.
That’s what a great mentor does.
Annette
