Lemondrop

If career advancement is one of your goals for the New Year, then having a mentor can help. Alexandra Levit, career expert and author of "New Job, New You: A Guide to Reinventing Yourself in a Bright New Career," shows you how.

1. Identify people you admire. Levit suggests looking beyond your boss and perhaps even your department to find someone you admire who also shares your business values. "Observe powerful individuals in your company and approach someone with a generous spirit who seems to enjoy helping others," she suggests. "Ideally, this person will have already passed through the part of the career path that you are currently on, and will have achieved success by making smart decisions and learning from his experiences."

2. Request a meeting. While some people use cyber-mentors to get advice via email, often the strongest mentor-mentee relationships are built in person. "When contacting the person, briefly explain why you are seeking his guidance," Levit says. "Compliment him sincerely, and ask if he would be amenable to an in-person meeting. Upon sitting down face to face, reiterate your thanks, and lay out your vision for the relationship. Read the person's reaction. Hopefully, he will be as enthusiastic as you are, and the two of you can set up a timeline for future meetings. But if he isn't, now is the time to find out. You don't want a mentor who is meeting with you out of a sense of obligation."

3. Be prepared. Before you meet your mentor in person, think about the type of information that would be useful at this stage of your career and how often you hope to meet. But Levit cautions mentees to "make sure your expectations are reasonable, because the potential mentor is unlikely to agree if he thinks he will have to meet with you every week or act as a referee between you and your boss."

4. Show gratitude. Many people enjoy helping younger workers excel, but remember that your mentor is also taking time out of his already hectic schedule and could be doing other things with his time. Levit recommends "[showing] your mentor the appreciation he deserves for giving you the benefit of his experience. Follow up on your commitments to him, and brainstorm ways to help him in return. Be creative -- it could be something as simple as walking his dog when he has to go out of town unexpectedly."

Your turn! Have you had a more senior person to help you advance up the corporate ladder? What worked for you and your mentor?