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This is a series of articles published by Kai Fu Lee. I did the translation after graduation from university in summer to learn more about the technology trend and practise my translation skill.

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Translation of Kaifu Lee’s post on LinkedIn - Get Yourself a Mentor

李开复LinkedIn文章翻译之七 - 给自己找个导师吧

A personal mentor is like a personal trainer – someone who can give you objective and personalized help to make you better.

（创业）导师就像是私人助教 – 一个能给你提供目标和个性化帮助来让你更好的人。

A good mentor is usually someone who knows something about your job and company, but need not be an expert. A mentor shouldn’t be your direct manager or in your line of management, because that may create a conflict of interest for him/her. And a mentor should be more senior than you, but not by too much. Someone who is about two promotions higher is ideal. A mentor who is not senior enough may not be able to take a step back and see the forest and not just the trees. But a mentor who is too senior may not be able to step into your shoes and see things they way you do.

好的导师是那种对你的工作和公司有点了解的人，但不必是专家。导师不应该是你的直接管理者或是在你管的这条线中，因为这样可能会导致和他/她的利益冲突。而且导师应该要比你资格老一些，但也不是老太多。比你高两个级别的人就比较理想。如果导师的资格不够老可能没办法后退一步避免只见树木不见森林的情况。但资格太老了可能没办法设身处地并用你的方式来看待事物。

There are three types of mentors (or the “three C’s”):

有三种类型的导师（或称为“3C”）：

Comforter – A person you call when you’re having trouble. A good comforter would lend you a sympathetic ear (and occasionally a shoulder to cry on). But he/she would help you see the silver lining in a dark cloud, and also cheer you up and give you confidence and hope.

安慰者 – 一个你在遇到麻烦的时候能联系的人。好的安慰者会是有同情心的听众（而且偶尔还会借你肩膀靠着大哭一场）。但他/她会帮你看到乌云密布之中的一线曙光，也鼓励你、给你自信和希望。

Clarifier – A expert at analyzing and problem-solving. A good clarifier will ask questions, listen, ask more questions, help develop multiple solutions, and finally help you pick one. A really good clarifier should get you to a point where you can pick the solution without help, and also learn how to problem-solve for yourself the next time.

分析者– 一个在分析和解决问题方面的专家。好的分析者会问些问题，倾听，再问些问题，帮助形成各种解决方案，最后再帮你选择一种。真正好的分析者应该带着你到你能够不靠帮助自己做决定，并且也带你学会下一次如何自己解决问题。

Confronter – When you are complacent, lazy, or afraid, you need a confronter to challenge and push you, and remind you of your commitments. Good confronters are tough and not always pleasant, but they are particularly important for those of us who lack discipline or courage.

鞭策者 – 当你自满、懒惰或者害怕时，你需要一位鞭策者来挑战并推动你，还得提醒你你的那些许诺。好的鞭策者不屈不挠，有时候还让人觉得不爽，但他们对我们之中缺少纪律和勇气的人来说非常重要。

I have been fortunate to have had all three types of mentors in my career. So go out there and find your mentors. Then, for each situation, seek out the right mentor to help you resolve the situation and also uplevel yourself.

我很荣幸地在事业上拥有所有三种类型的导师。所以，出去寻找属于你的导师吧！然后，根据具体的情况，找出合适的导师来帮助你处理局面并自我提升。