seal with a smile

In turn, I have tried to mentor others , including friends of friends, and as I get older, children offriends. I get so much joy out of watching the career of Emily

White, who started working with runs mobile partnerships for Facebook. When I first met Bryan Schreier,he had never worked in a tech

company or traveled abroad, but he displayed unusually strongleadership and analytical skills. I hired him to help build Google’s global operations, and he

exceededevery expectation. Years later, when he wanted to pursue a new career as an investor, I introduced himto his current partners at Sequoia Capital. He is now a

highly successful early stage venture capitalist,and I can see the impact he has on the companies he advises. I am fortunate to have Emily and Bryanand so many other

talented people in my life.

Studies show that mentors select protégés based on performance and potential.

Intuitively, peopleinvest in those who stand out for their talent or who can really benefit from help. Mentors continue toinvest when mentees use their time well and

are truly open to feedback. It may turn into a friendship,but the foundation is a professional relationship. Given this, I believe we have sent the wrong messageto

young women. We need to stop telling them, “Get a mentor and you will excel.” Instead, we needto tell them, “Excel and you will get a mentor.”

Clara Shih is a superb example. I met Clara about five years ago at a conference and wasimmediately impressed by her ideas about social media. She went on to write a

thoughtful book on thesubject and founded Hearsay Social, a software company that helps businesses manage their socialmedia presence. Every so often, Clara would

contact me, always with an interesting point or athoughtful question.