The Ultimate Shortcut to Leveling Up in Work and Life
Why have all the answers when someone else has them for you?
I’m the kind of person who likes to get things done.
My favorite solutions to problems is the fastest, most efficient one. I don’t believe in wasting time or reinventing the wheel.
When I applied this mindset to leveling up in my career and life, I found a hack that put me miles ahead of my competition.
Mentors.
Learning from people who have already walked the path is the ultimate shortcut to success. You don’t have to struggle through trial and error when someone else has already figured it out.
I started to focus on getting myself close to the right people, absorbing their knowledge, and experienced exponential growth as a result.
Other people have the knowledge you’re seeking. Go ask for it!
You don’t need to have all the answers. Instead, get close to those who do.
If I had understood this earlier, I would have sought mentors out intentionally. But the truth is, I didn’t always realize I had mentors in my life until much later. When I was in the moment, I didn’t see them as “mentors”—they were just people I worked with, learned from, or had deep conversations with. In hindsight, I’ve been able to recognize the immense impact they had on my growth.
The best part of all this? These weren’t formal relationships where someone declared, “Hello, Brady. I will be your mentor!” It happened naturally, through work, conversations, and shared experiences.
Without these people, I wouldn’t be where anywhere near where I am today.
Mentors Changed My Life from the Shadows
One of the biggest turning points in my life came from my former boss, the COO of the company I mentioned in my last post.
It’s okay to take a quick pause here and read my last post…don’t worry I’ll wait for you to finish!
He gave me all of my opportunities based purely on my work product. Before he really had a chance to know me as a person.
We had met a few times, but had only known each other for about a month before he officially offered me a role.
He saw something in me that others didn’t. And unlike most, he was willing to give me a chance. Putting his name behind mine.
That chance changed everything.
Without him, I wouldn’t have stepped into that role, grown in my career, or developed the skills that eventually led me to where I am today. His willingness to mentor—whether intentional or not—put me on an accelerated path of learning and growth.
This is why I believe mentorship is one of the most underrated keys to success. You don’t have to know all the answers. You just need to be around people who do.
Growth Comes Through Discomfort
The ones who succeed are the ones made uncomfortable. Growth isn’t found in comfort—it’s found in the chiseling away of who you are, revealing who you were meant to become.
Think of Michelangelo sculpting David. The masterpiece was always there, hidden inside the marble. But it had to be carved, chipped, and shaped to emerge.
That’s what mentorship does. It puts you in tough situations that strip away the unnecessary parts of you. It forces you to level up. It exposes your weaknesses and pushes you beyond what you thought you were capable of.
And most of the time, it doesn’t feel good in the moment.
Mentors will challenge you. They’ll push you. They might even frustrate you. But that’s the point.
Mentors Come in All Forms
One mistake people make is thinking that mentors have to be these official figures—someone who agrees to guide you in a formal, structured way. That’s just not how it works.
Mentors come in all forms, and they often show up when you least expect them.
In Business
Professionally, your success is often tied more to the relationships you build then the things you do. The better you cultivate those relationships, the more opportunities come your way.
The fastest way to grow in your career, find someone ahead of you and learn from them. Observe how they think, how they approach problems, how they communicate. Ask questions. Study their habits.
Why struggle to figure it all out when someone else has already cracked the code?
Here’s the reality: People who are further along in their careers want to help others who show promise. If you work hard, add value, and show that you’re serious about growth, people will naturally want to guide you. But they won’t ever do it if you don’t ask.
You might be starting at zero, but you don’t have to climb alone.
Wisdom Comes from Experience
The same applies to life.
We all need people who have been through the wringer—people who have faced challenges, made mistakes, and come out the other side.
These people can help you avoid pitfalls, shift your perspective, and help you make better decisions.
I’ve learned some of my most valuable life lessons from people who were much older than me. Not because they were trying to be my mentor, but because they had been through it. Whatever that “it” may be.
The best mentors are the ones who have battle scars.
They’ve faced failure. They’ve experienced heartbreak. They’ve struggled, doubted themselves, and had to fight their way back.
Those are the people worth listening to.
A book can give you knowledge, but a mentor gives you wisdom.
Go Find One
Here’s the thing—mentors usually don’t come knocking on your door.
They don’t always announce themselves. They don’t say, “Hey, I’d love to mentor you.”
Most of the time, they appear unexpectedly, sometimes completely out of the blue.
It might be a boss who sees potential in you. A coworker who offers advice. A professor who challenges your thinking. A friend who has been through what you’re going through now.
People who don’t just tell you how great you are—seek those who help you see where you need to improve. Even if it’s hard to hear.
These are the people, that if you’re willing to listen, will help you grow at a speed you never could on your own.
What Next?
Looking back, I can now clearly see the people who played a role in shaping me. They weren’t always official “mentors,” but they were instrumental in my growth.
I didn’t get here alone. None of us do.
The sooner you realize that success isn’t about knowing all the answers—but about surrounding yourself with the right people—the faster you’ll get to where you want to be.
So, go find a mentor. Build relationships. Learn from those who have walked the path before you.
And one day, you might just find yourself in a position to do the same for someone else.
With Sincerity,
Brady