How to find a great mentor?

Hi guys,

I've returned to Treehouse in the past few weeks after taking a break for a few years. There's so much more content on here than when I last used it (probably 5 years ago now), and it's become a really diverse platform. I'm really enjoying learning something new again. Thanks guys!

I've worked in the field of design (with some front-end dev) for the majority of the last 10 years, but I hit some difficult times recently and I'm not entirely sure that I'm making the right decisions in picking a route forward.

At the moment I'm freelancing but the client management side of things really isn't for me, so I'm looking to make a transition into full time work.

I do a lot of reading and a lot of research - but I really miss having someone in my life to help guide my progression. Sometimes it's useful to have a boss or some colleagues that you respect to ask for advice. Unfortunately, I don't have that wider network available to me in my current setup as a freelancer.

So I'm looking to build a relationship with someone to act as a mentor. But it has to be someone that's great - not only in what they do, but in their ability to communicate and in their coaching skills too. I guess I'm asking a lot.

Can anyone recommend a good course of action to try finding someone?

I've considered writing to a few designers that I really respect but I'm afraid it's really out of the blue, and I have no way to gauge whether they'd make a good mentor. Just because someone does great work, doesn't necessarily mean they'll be any good at guiding someone else.

Any ideas would be welcome.

Thanks! Rich =)