Since Greek philosophers, the value of a mentor has always been underestimated. 2000 years later the rules still apply. A mentor, or at least emulating someone... who is now where you want to be at some point in the future, is the fastest way to success.

A mentor will laugh at problems you consider impossible and it will speed up your learning process... and make it less frustrating and more challenging. Ideal mentors are colleagues, preferably more experienced than you... but also people that you can frequently interact with either offline or online.

In my next post, I'll talk more about how to get the most out of your mentor without being disruptive to his or her schedule. In case you struggle in finding one or you don't feel any form of synergy with the ones that offered to coach you... an alternative is a community of like-minded people... where different perspectives and backgrounds will help you solve problems faster.

You can find these people either on blogs and forums. But the most effective way is to either search for or establish a local community... and have weekly or monthly meet-ups. The exchange of ideas will help you to stay on track with industry changes, new technologies, and can even offer career opportunities.

As a newbie, having a good mentor will speed up your learning process... and can at the same time open a lot of opportunities to you.

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