(tldr; we launched a pack of cards for mentorships. Go buy them here!)
If 2021 was the year of everyone planning to quit their jobs, 2022 emerged as the year of finding mentors to help. Candidates were interviewing, weighing job offers, stretching for the roles and titles they desired… and all of these prospective hires needed advice, advice that, for obvious reasons, wasn’t available via their managers.
Enter: mentors.
I had no intention of releasing a Plucky product this year but, by the spring, I had heard so much about mentorships that I knew there was something here. So today I’m very proud to announce the launch of Plucky’s Mentor cards!
This is not Plucky’s first rodeo when it comes to 1:1 cards and I bet that many of you have our original Starter Pack or Manager Pack by now. The Mentor Pack is different because it allows questions to flow both directions — between mentor and mentee — and it also includes a thick stack of cards worth talking about. These are larger career and modern work topics that lead into stories, advice and genuine evolution. How often should you expect to be promoted? Do you need to build a network on LinkedIn? Does having a large following affect how you’re treated at work? And how do you know when it’s finally time to leave your job?
These topics are ripe for a professional mentorship, where one person gives back and one person looks forward and everyone is energized as a result. They’re also useful in diversifying this work. Maybe the same person isn’t the right mentor for all topics… in this case, pull a card and find your way to the exact right person.
Years ago, I was approached by a young woman who wasn’t sure where she wanted to go in her career. She asked me to be her mentor so I said yes… but I soon realized that I didn’t know what that meant. Was I supposed to bring curriculum? Was she supposed to bring a resume? How long would we do this for? In the end I told her I couldn’t commit to a full mentorship so we resorted to coffee every once in a while.
Potential mentorships can get stuck for exactly this reason; the Mentor Pack has a Beginnings card to help you define structure and expectations There’s an Endings card to wrap things up at the end and bring things naturally to a close.
It doesn’t have to be awkward. It can really be that simple.
In short, you should buy these cards if you are:
- a mentor who wants to use the cards with your current mentee
- a mentee who wants to approach a mentor with a plan
- a manager who wants to fold more mentorship into her practice
- a People Ops person who needs more content to use between senior and mid-level practitioners
- a conference organizer who wants a cool item for the audience gift-bags
- a Plucky fan ❤
As industries and careers change, one thing remains true: it feels good to support each other. Let this be a guiding principle in your work together as you give back and give forward. I’ve seen it a million times; this is how we all work best. Go ahead and check it out!
P.S. Much appreciation to my clients, who share their stories, and thanks in particular to Alex, Ange, Carolyn and Noam for their thoughtful comments. Props to Joanna for designing another gorgeous product! And thanks always to my husband who handles last minute photo cropping and QA testing on all devices 🙂
P.P.S. Look at this product family! Swoon!
