Thought of the Day - Mentors

It is important to have a mentor in work, i think i have always been happiest in jobs when i had a mentor. A good boss is one thing, but someone senior who is intelligent, is on a career path you want and takes an interest in your career development really makes the difference in terms of job satisfaction.

Don't get me wrong, someone with the above qualities is hard to find. They can't be your direct line manager (makes it hard to discuss your problems) and they can't be a peer (they don't have the experience or big picture) which does kinda limit the options. Unfortunately my mentor in my current job has left the company and i am struggling to think who cold replace him. If he cannot be replaced then maybe it is time to move on and find a mentor in another company.

It also raises an interesting quandary, at what point can you become a mentor, how much more senior and/or intelligent do you have to be to mentor someone else? And even if you are mentoring other people do you still need mentoring for that?