Never underestimate the power of a career mentor. Working with someone who can relate to your goals and talents is key in getting and staying on the best career path for you. Here are some tips about finding your mentoring and fostering a good relationship with him or her.

Find your mentor. First of all, know that your boss or supervisor is not a mentor. They are your leader, and in a strange way, your competition. Are they interested in showing you the “tricks of the trade” that have gotten them to where they within the company? Uh, notsomuch. Why should they gift wrap the advantage of experience it has taken them years to achieve? However, this does not mean that looking within your own workplace for an appropriate mentor is out of the question. Senior staff members with a lifetime of experience behind them may often be willing to—even enthusiastic about—mentoring someone that reminds them of themselves at the start of their own careers. The most ideal way to acquaint yourself with a mentor is simply through networking. Happy hour and business meetings often introduce folks to each other and like minded people naturally gravitate toward each other. Sometimes businesses even offer mentoring opportunities that pair their senior employees with new hires or up-and-comers. This is also an excellent resource for forming working partnerships. If you are still unable to find a mentor through these means, contact your local workforce center for a referral.

Respect your mentor. The best mentor relationships are formed between folks who mutually respect each other and have similar characteristics, both personal and business. Along this same vein, the ability of the individual being mentored to accept constructive criticism is absolutely vital. What good does it do to willingly seek out advice and constructive criticism if you refuse to take it or follow directives? If your mentor gives you an assignment, do it in a timely manner and to the best of your ability. Otherwise you are simply wasting your time and theirs.

Don’t abuse your mentor. Lay down guidelines with reference to time. Don’t be too needy or abuse your mentor’s time. You don’t want your mentor to do an about-face and run the opposite direction when they see you coming. Establishing certain meeting hours or once a week lunch meetings will benefit both of you and avoid infringing on each others’ lives.

Consider becoming a mentor. That’s right—if you’ve enjoyed a relative amount of business success in your life, considering mentoring a more inexperience employee at your firm or in the same line of work. You will derive great enjoyment in seeing your business success play out the second time around. If you’ve got an hour or two a week, you can really perform a world of good.

Mentoring has become a major buzzword in nearly every industry. Following these few basic rules can help ensure a good mentor relationship no matter which side of the desk you’re on!

Confused? Don’t be.

Here’s the scenario—you’re currently employed but looking for a different opportunity; how can you find a different position without compromising your present paycheck or your business integrity? Here is a list we’ve compiled that can help you align your work ethics with job-seeking etiquette.

Don’t search for a job while you’re at your present job. You’ll feel better at the end of the day if you’ve made your job search without compromising the quality of your work by using your work resources to conduct your job-finding campaign. Likely, such activity would be grounds for immediate dismissal from your position. Don’t do it on your boss’ dime; it’s not how you’d want things done if the roles were reversed.

Never, ever-ever badmouth your current employer. Boy-oh-boy—running your mouth about your current employer tells your interviewer far more about you than it does about your employer. Slandering your current boss to anyone, particularly when looking for a job, is the poorest possible decision. Prospective employers will assume that in time, you’ll be running off at the mouth about your new company. When asked why you wish to leave your present position, a good rule of thumb is to stay positive, citing only the need for better utilizing your skills and so forth, and avoid saying anything derogatory about your present employer even if he or she is a total ogre and the company is on the verge of collapse. Prospective employers want to know you can display solidarity and be highly confidential.
Never share information about your job-seeking mission with colleagues. You just never know who is going to say what to whom, or who is whose nephew or goddaughter. Zip the lip in the workplace.

Don’t take calls or receive emails at your current workplace from prospective employers. It’s tacky and it can get you fired. Also, arrange interviews to take place during lunchtime, after work, during personal time or even on weekends. You’re not putting off prospective employers by making such requests; you’re showing him/her that you respect your employer and they will expect that you will, in turn, be responsible and respectful of them as well should they choose to hire you.

Watch your references. Unless you’re on very good and friendly terms with your employer and he or she realizes that you are looking for another job, resist checking the box that says you give permission for the interviewer to contact your present employee. Can you imagine the tension that will cause in the workplace? Especially if you don’t get the job you were interviewing for?

Don’t steal clients. If you’re employed with ad advertising or brokerage firm, you’re probably familiar with such stories about representatives or agents leaving and taking their closest clients with them. Bad idea. By soliciting your current clientele for your new client base, you’re saying more about yourself than you probably realize—predominantly that you’re not trustworthy. It makes people uncomfortable. If, however, you have a particularly good relationship with a client, it is not unreasonable to inform them of your departure and offer to assist in their transition to working with a new representative or agent. Never lobby for their continued loyalty; however, they may ask you for a personal card, in which case the ball is in their court and you may provide one to them. Do continue on your mission to satisfy them at your present job until your very last day. This will make a tremendous impression on both your client roster and your employer.

Keep on keepin’ on. Make sure that you don’t slack off at your present position, even if you think you’re about to leave. Remember that those work references are priceless. Even if you don’t have the best relationship with your current employer, you can be assured that they will appreciate your attention to detail right up to the last minute and that they will be far less likely to dish any off the record dirt with a new or prospective employer.

Okay class, remember a few short years ago when we were longing to live it up like those dot-commers who were out there, building pimped-out fortresses and partying like rock stars? Then along came the dot-com fiasco and now the recession—makes the medical technician who makes a moderate living feel like a superhero just for being able to hold onto his or her job.

I don’t know if I really believe there’s such a thing as a recession-proof job. I believe the term “recession-proof” will hit the top-searched list at Google this year hands down. But there really are some jobs out there that seem to have an element of staying power. Shall we take a look at a few? When I call your name you can sit down and take a breather. In no particular order we have…..

Medical anything. We’re not going all fancy here—simply put, if you’re in the medical field, you’re relatively safe. Maybe you’re not a wealthy doctor, but there will always be a need for you. Yes even you, Mr. Bedpan-Changer. Lucky for you families can’t shave medical expenses off the budget the same way they trimmed out movie out night, but they can’t, period. Medical folks you’re safe, take a seat.

Service jobs you have to get dirty for. Right-o. The single toilet in the house is not going to hang back on the big-time back-up just because you’ve got a cash deficit. Same with the heater quitting or the anything else your house needs to run smoothly. Auto mechanics, ditto. No breaks in those businesses. You repair folks are golden. Take a load off.

Anything for brainiac save-the-earth folks. Yep, if you’ve got a talent, idea or other gift for doing something that’s going to make some energy sense on this planet—you’re going to be fine in this recession. And companies, no matter how they are suffering in other aspects, still want the community to know that Mother Nature comes first. Plus, we do need alternative energy sources. No recession will take away the need for solar energy, fuel efficiency and the like. So if you’re a brainy energy-scientist who can stay at the top of your game, grab a chair and relax.

If you’re shaping the future of America, you can also have a chair. Teachers, professors, school administrators—you may continue to enjoy salaries that won’t have you pimping out your cribs anytime soon, but the good news is, you will have a job. Good for you. Now sit down.

For those of you who remain standing, it’s time to consider playing nice with others at your present job whatever it is. Avoid rocking the boat and don’t apply for new credit cards while you hold on and try to ride out the recession. If you’ve already been hit hard by the economic situation, you may want to batten down the recession hatches in a decent college program somewhere. Educate yourself (try one of the aforementioned jobs perhaps?) and prepare for your second launch into the great-big world. If you can’t stand the sight of blood, don’t want to sink your hands in toilet ooze, and don’t have patience enough to wipe the noses of 5-year-old children all day long, get creative. Creative positions, home-owned businesses and consultation services are still faring well in the marketplace. So go for it.

Good luck. Class is dismissed.

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While you are gone, do not become consumed with work, but do stay in touch. Send a quick e-mail to your boss and co-workers so you know what is going on work-wise as well as keeping up with the office happenings. This will make the transition back to work less awkward.

Although you may have set a specific date to return to work, do not hold yourself to this date if it just doesn’t feel right. It is an emotional time and many new parents feel the need to spend more time at home. Make sure you are fully rested because new mothers are tired enough as it is. Lack of proper rest can result in excess stress along with additional weight gain.

It is ok to be emotional during this time, but don’t feel guilty about leaving your baby to return to work. Your child will not be miserable without you. Feel free to check in with the caregiver to during the day to give yourself piece of mind. Also, utilize your lunch hour. Either spend that time visiting your baby or do things that would otherwise take away from quality time after work.

Consider easing yourself back into work. Do not throw yourself back into work by going full steam ahead; schedule your first day back on a Thursday or Friday. This will make your first week a short one and allow you just enough time to become acclimated with your old office environment. Also think about going back part-time for a short while. If your job and employer allow you to telecommute for part of the week, this could be a helpful, temporary arrangement for both of you.

Returning to work is a personal decision and only you know when the time is right. No one situation is the same, so this is a situation in which to let your emotions and instincts guide you.