Mentorship is fundamentally a personal relationship. Some like to call reading books or watching seminar as mentorship but I think that should be called “reading” and “attending seminars” respectively, not mentorship. The particular act of mentoring requires meeting face to face, brainstorming, discussing ideas, giving encouragement, personal attention, physical contact, following up on emails, calling on the phone when necessary, and keeping the other person accountable for everything that was decided together.
For that reason finding a mentor means convincing the person to meet at some point, and then convincing your mentor that you are worthy of meeting again and again. You can begin by email or a phone call, or the introduction by a common friend, but at some point you will have to talk eye-to-eye and open your heart, say that you need help, that you value that person’s experience and expertise, and would be happy to learn.
The good news is that when you are real and honest, and if you really want to learn, very few mentors would ever refuse to take you under their wing. When the student is ready the teacher will appear.
