Know Who to Take Advice From
How to pick right advisor for your growth journey
In the world of career development and personal growth, the sources of your advice can be just as important as the advice itself. While it's natural to seek guidance from people you respect and admire, it’s crucial to ensure that those individuals have the right experience and perspective relevant to your specific goals.
Are they the right person ?
If you're aspiring to become a staff engineer, the best person to seek advice from is someone who is currently working as a staff engineer. They are living the experience you want to achieve, navigating the same challenges, and understanding the nuanced skills required for the role. They can provide insights into the technical expertise, leadership qualities, and strategic thinking needed to excel in that position.
On the other hand, if your goal is to transition into product management (PM), you need to talk to a successful PM. The skills and mindset required for product management are distinct from those of a staff engineer. A PM can offer valuable advice on stakeholder management, product strategy, and customer-centric thinking, which are essential for the role.
Do they have right experience or expertise ?
It's important to differentiate between expertise and experience. While someone might be highly knowledgeable in their field, their advice might not be as relevant if they haven't walked the path you're aiming to follow.
For example, a brilliant engineer might have a wealth of technical knowledge but may not be the best person to advise you on how to start and run a successful business. Entrepreneurial skills such as market analysis, funding, and scaling a business require a different set of experiences that only someone who has successfully navigated these waters can provide.
What Stage of Life they are In ?
People often forget the struggles they faced long ago. For example, if you are a junior engineer, you should take advice from a senior engineer and not a distinguished engineer.
A senior engineer can tell you better about the struggles they face as compared to a distinguished engineer who was a senior engineer 10 years back. Even though the distinguished engineer handles more scope, their journey to senior is not fresh. They faced different kind of struggles at that time which might not be relevant. They will be better guiding a staff reaching distinguish.
A mentor or advisor can play a significant role in accelerating your career, so be choosy like you are while picking companies to work at
Practical Steps to Find the Right Advisors
Identify Your Goals: Clearly define what you want to achieve. Whether it's a career transition, a promotion, or starting a business, having a clear goal will help you find the right advisors.
Seek Relevant Experience: Look for individuals who have successfully achieved what you aspire to. Their firsthand experience will provide practical and relevant advice.
Diversify Your Sources: Don’t rely on a single source of advice. Different perspectives can provide a well-rounded understanding of the challenges and opportunities you might face.
Engage in Communities: Join professional groups, attend conferences, and participate in online forums where you can connect with people who are in the roles you aspire to.
Mentorship Programs: Many organizations and professional networks offer mentorship programs that can connect you with experienced professionals in your desired field.
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״ What Stage of Life they are In ?” is a great and often forgotten question.
Sometimes it’s not only about them being too far along, but about generation differences. For example a gen X staff engineer might tell you to get your head down, do as you are told and wait for the promotion to come , as that’s what he was taught to do.
But that’s might be very different for a Gen Z engineer.
Great advice, Hemant. It's important to have a network of people you take advice from. I don't recommend a new grad engineer getting advice from a 20 YOE CTO for example, unless that new grad eng also has mentors closer to them in experience. You'll always be able to get the best advice from the people 1-2 years ahead of you