Mentor.

It’s the ultimate career buzzword. We constantly hear about how important mentorship is to achieving success … but why, exactly? What makes a good mentor? And what kind of advice should a good mentor be giving?

Tara Hooper-Jones, Systems Specialist, Success and Services Team at Salesforce, is here to weigh in. After spending years in the nursing profession, Hooper-Jones switched industries to become a helpdesk analyst, discovered her love of IT, and never looked back. Today, she helps create new processes to help Salesforce employees work smarter, pushes the innovation envelope by staying an active member of Women in Technology groups, and still finds quality time to spend with her two-year-old son.

On her path to success at one of the world’s most innovative companies, Hooper-Jones has learned a lot about the value of mentorship, and she’s ready to share. Take just one minute to check out what Salesforce’s Woman of the Month has to say about mentors … and take advantage of the best guidance she’s ever received.

1. What does a good mentor look like?

A good mentor is someone who is real. Someone who is honest. Someone who will share successes and failures, who is willing to support someone else who is making their own mistakes. A good mentor knows that careers can ebb and flow, and is ready to help people see how each decision can be critical to their ultimate successes and failures. I also think the strongest mentors understand the importance of enjoying whatever field you are in – happiness and excitement breed success.

2. Why should women seek out mentors, and become mentors themselves?

Women should seek out mentors because good mentors will encourage them to view their careers from different perspectives, speak up more for themselves, and pursue challenging or intimidating new opportunities. Women should become mentors to share their experiences and help others grow in their careers. Go for it – schedule coffee with people you admire, pursue relationships with more than one mentor, gather opinions from both men and women, see how other people approach mentorship, and mold the practice into something that works for you. 

3. What is the best advice you’ve gotten from a mentor?

The best advice I’ve gotten is to figure out your top three personal values and stand by them. A great mentor had me go through that exercise, and it really changed the way I think about all the choices that impact my career. Also, my very first mentor advised me to stick to my guns when it came to work/life balance, and that I wouldn’t regret it. I set my standards and held firm, and although I may have missed some opportunities by prioritizing my family, in the end I’m happier because of it.

The Salesforce Woman of the Month campaign turns the spotlight on the amazing women who help make Salesforce one of the World’s Most Innovative Companies (according to Forbes) and one of Fortune Magazine’s Best Companies to Work For. Honorees are nominated by fellow employees and selected by a dedicated committee that works to ensure a variety of roles and regions are honored.

To hear more from Tara Hooper-Jones, make sure to connect with her on LinkedIn. And stay tuned for more career tips and tools for success from our next Salesforce Woman of the Month, coming your way in August.

Ready to advance your career at Salesforce? Visit salesforce.com/careers.