Life and Work are All About Perspectives

This week, I was fortunate enough to attend the Transportation Security Administration’s (TSA) Mentor Program event where Steve Ressler, GovLoop’s CEO and Founder, was invited as a guest speaker.

The event was designed to congratulate the 650 + participants of the program, reinforce the importance of what everyone was doing, and share some inspirational stories of the real impact of the program. While I have never participated in a mentor relationship, I left feeling inspired myself and wanted to share what I learned with the GovLoop community for my first-ever blog post!

My main takeaway? The theme of perspectives. One of the main benefits of having a mentor relationship is having someone to give you a new, different perspective on whatever you’re discussing. Sometimes you get tunnel vision at work – you’re focused on your daily tasks but may rarely take a step back to look at the bigger picture. Or you may take one position on an issue in the workplace and are unable to see the counterargument. A mentor can quickly give you a different perspective to help you see things more robustly or be more rational when dealing with conflict.

When you think about it, the best parts of life are about getting different perspectives. When you form relationships with people, you gain their perspectives; when you travel, you gain new cultural perspectives; and when you try new things, — you guessed it – you gain a new perspective. So, mentorship’s main benefit is to help you get new perspectives in the workplace.

And there are more benefits to reap from a mentorship – not only for you, but for your organization. For you, talking with your mentor will instill a sense of confidence and give you the encouragement you need to tackle new projects or problems. For your organization, a mentor’s program is a great way to keep employees engaged, and engagement is key to improved morale, growth and a happy workplace.