7 Tips for Finding Your Perfect UX Mentor
People often ask me “Where can I find a UX mentor?” When you’re a new User Experience (UX) designer, there’s a lot to learn. It’s hard to make sense of everything you’ve absorbed from classes, workshops, blog posts and books.
Even after you work in the field a while and gain experience, User Experience designers need to wear many hats and master many different skills to succeed. After learning everything you can by yourself, sometimes it’s helpful to have someone who can give you a fresh perspective and provide guidance.
Use these 7 tips to find and create a productive relationship with a UX mentor.
Know yourself
No-one can help you with everything. Be precise about the help you want, or at least give a direction. A specific request like “I’d like a code review of this project,” “What are the new advances in SEO I should know about,” or “What are some blogs I should read” makes it easier for the person you ask to decide if they are a good fit to help you (or not).
Use your network
Who is good at the things you want to learn? You can use LinkedIn to find people in your network who have a particular skill. There are lots of smart, talented people out there who are not famous, and you might have less competition from other people asking them for help. Many UX Meetups and other professional networking groups include an announcement period. Let people know what you’re looking for. If there isn’t someone in the room who can help you, someone might be able to introduce you to someone they know.
Be brave
It can be scary to ask for help. If you do it well, people may say “no” but they will be flattered you asked. If you ask politely and have a clear request, they may even refer you to someone who can help.
Start small
“Can you answer some questions over coffee” is easier to say “yes” to than, “will you be my mentor?” When you don’t know someone already, it’s better to send a short introduction and ask permission before you send your portfolio. You’re asking someone to give you their time; make it comfortable for them to say “no” if they don’t have bandwidth to help you
Do your homework
Be familiar with things your mentor has already written (blog posts, presentations on SlideShare, GitHub profile, books). You’ll get a more engaged response if you ask specific questions and show knowledge of what they’ve published.
Have respect
Be attentive to scheduling and following up; if your mentor is good at what they are doing, they probably have a full schedule. Be on time for meetings and calls and if you need to make a change don’t cancel at the last minute.
Be human
A good mentor relationship should be balanced and a pleasure for both people. Look for ways to say “thank you!” and pay it forward by helping other people with things you know.
photo credit: Alberto C. Vázquez
