How do I help a mentee decide between two paths?
"Which should I pick?" is a request to hand over responsibility. The useful move is to hand back a better-framed choice.
- Read time
- 3 minutes
- Module
- Core skills
- Session length
- 30 minutes
What good looks like.
Get the criteria first. Money, learning, location, security and pace rarely rank the same way for two people.
Test each option against those criteria out loud. Most decisions resolve themselves once the ranking is explicit.
Say what you would weigh, and label it as your view rather than the answer.
A sequence you can follow.
- 01
List the options plainly
Two columns, in their words.
- 02
Rank what matters
Three criteria in order, no more.
- 03
Score each option
Ask which they would regret not taking in two years.
- 04
Name the next check
What information would settle it, and how to get it this week.
What to avoid.
Steering them toward the path you took
Adding a third option they did not ask about
Ending on "it depends" with nothing attached
Extra tips
Small things that make the half hour better.
Rank three criteria
Explicit ranking resolves most decisions on its own.
Ask the regret question
"Which would you regret not taking in two years?"
Label your view
Give an opinion, but mark it as yours.
Name the missing fact
What information would settle it this week?
Take this guide with you.
Download a printable version of this guide: the short answer, the steps, the extra tips, the mistakes to avoid and the questions mentors ask, to read before your next session.
The things people ask first.
What if they ask me directly what to do?
Answer, but frame it: "On your criteria, I would take the second one, because…"
Next: Networking advice that actually works.
Replace "build your network" with one message they send tomorrow.