The Roles of a Mentor
- M-anage the relationship
- E-ncourage
- N-urture
- T-each
- O-ffer mutual respect
- R-espond to the learner's needs
MORE IDEAS FROM THE ARTICLE
Mentoring is about being able pass knowledge to someone who would benefit from it.
Mentoring programs usually have four key elements:
- Improving performance
- Career development
- Counselling
- Sharing knowledge
- Learning Consultant: The mentor must help the learner to clarify his goals and identify the learning style needed.
- Coach: The mentor should have the will to help the learner explore the problem and try new ways of working.
- Counselor: When the learner is struggling to think, the mentor could listen, reflect, and clarify to help the learner gain insight.
- Adviser or Information Resource: Share insights with the learner for faster and better understanding.
- Role Model: Sometimes, the learner does not only learn from what the mentor teaches, but from how the mentor acts.
- Critical Friend: The mentor can also simply be a friend, however, it is the most difficult because it requires the willingness to listen, encourage, draw out, reflect, challenge, and provide feedback about ideas.
- For the learner: Experiences and actual advice from an expert can be gained.
- For the mentor: By teaching, you also learn. The mentor could have the satisfaction of being able to help someone and improve his leadership trait.
RELATED IDEAS
- Identify learning goals and style and measure success for the mentoring relationship.
- Be open and seek feedback.
- Be active in learning.
- Schedule and attend mentor appointments.
- Follow through on commitments and take informed risks as they try new options and behaviors in support of career and development goals.
The terms mentoring and coaching are often mistakenly interchanged. Although they are similar, they are not the same when it comes to approach.
- Mentoring - long-term relationship focusing on the growth and development of the mentee with the mentor as the source of the wisdom, support, and knowledge.
- Coaching - short-term relationship focusing on strengthening traits and eliminating behaviors that diminishes one's performance.
To develop a successful mentoring relationships:
- Design the Alliance. Both parties must have an agreement on the contact and response times, meetings, confidentiality, focus, feedback, and goals and accountability.
- Get to Know Each Other. It is important to have a strong relationship and trust before focusing on the problem.
- Set the Agenda. Be clear on the purpose and goals of the program.
- Reflect and Evaluate. Know if there is a progress or development gained from the mentoring every few meetings.
- Closeout. Before parting ways, have a closure with each other. Reflect and appreciate what both parties have learned and gained from the experience.