5 ms·

As a senior dev I’d love to mentor, but my imposter syndrome tells me that I don’t have anything meaningful to share because all my success has been a fluke

neivin 3y ago
Don't worry, some of the people on this list probably have nothing meaningful to share. e.g. a university student (2025 grad) who is working part time is in this list.
- highwaylights 3y ago
  To be fair, I clicked into the list and maybe I’m being naive but the first person I clicked on mentioned that they’d be happy to talk to someone about anything from mentoring to Star Trek episodes, so I think it’s kind. There could very well be someone out there that’s otherwise isolated (maybe in a new city) and just hanging out with other company at the right moment makes a big difference in their life. Also it’s odd to me to suggest that a university student has nothing useful to share. If you’re a first-year student that’s struggling, another student who’s familiar with what that’s like in 2024 could be exactly who you need to speak to.
- PartiallyTyped 3y ago
  I think everyone has something to "offer". https://humanlibrary.org/ https://humanlibrary.org/
j45 3y ago
Staying humble about working hard and what comes from it is probably still meaningful to share
em-bee 3y ago
i am in a similar situation, but i find that the most help people need is to sound off their problems and get someone to look at them from a different perspective. you are not giving them directions, you are just pointing out things they may not have considered. usually the people already made a choice or have an answer, but they need someone to confirm that it's a good one. when you are alone facing a problem, sometimes it is difficult to sort through it all, and then it helps to have a second person to confirm things, or help you step through the problem with a fresh mind until the right solution becomes self evident in summary, you are not sharing your knowledge but your experience and the wisdom that you have acquired over the years. and a lot of that is not specific to your career but simply a factor of being older/ having worked longer. in theory any 50 year old could be a mentor to any 30 year old. we just seek out people with a similar background because it is more likely that we understand each other.
softwaredoug 3y ago
Don’t think about it as mentoring, just chat and compare notes about your work. You’ll help each other out.
jononor 3y ago
Have you helped your coworkers before? Then you got what it takes to get started.

neivin 3y ago

Don't worry, some of the people on this list probably have nothing meaningful to share. e.g. a university student (2025 grad) who is working part time is in this list.

highwaylights 3y ago
To be fair, I clicked into the list and maybe I’m being naive but the first person I clicked on mentioned that they’d be happy to talk to someone about anything from mentoring to Star Trek episodes, so I think it’s kind. There could very well be someone out there that’s otherwise isolated (maybe in a new city) and just hanging out with other company at the right moment makes a big difference in their life. Also it’s odd to me to suggest that a university student has nothing useful to share. If you’re a first-year student that’s struggling, another student who’s familiar with what that’s like in 2024 could be exactly who you need to speak to.
PartiallyTyped 3y ago
I think everyone has something to "offer". https://humanlibrary.org/ https://humanlibrary.org/

j45 3y ago

Staying humble about working hard and what comes from it is probably still meaningful to share

em-bee 3y ago

i am in a similar situation, but i find that the most help people need is to sound off their problems and get someone to look at them from a different perspective. you are not giving them directions, you are just pointing out things they may not have considered. usually the people already made a choice or have an answer, but they need someone to confirm that it's a good one. when you are alone facing a problem, sometimes it is difficult to sort through it all, and then it helps to have a second person to confirm things, or help you step through the problem with a fresh mind until the right solution becomes self evident in summary, you are not sharing your knowledge but your experience and the wisdom that you have acquired over the years. and a lot of that is not specific to your career but simply a factor of being older/ having worked longer. in theory any 50 year old could be a mentor to any 30 year old. we just seek out people with a similar background because it is more likely that we understand each other.

softwaredoug 3y ago

Don’t think about it as mentoring, just chat and compare notes about your work. You’ll help each other out.

jononor 3y ago

Have you helped your coworkers before? Then you got what it takes to get started.