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The world needs more mentoring.
Gallup’s most recent employee engagement survey found that in the last four years, our colleagues feel:
- more detached from the organization
- less connected to the mission and purpose
- more uncertain about expectations
- less likely to feel that we care about them as humans… yikes!
Sure, we all mentor unexpectedly or casually. We make suggestions, drop stories into conversations, give well-intended but unsolicited advice, and flippantly preach, “You should…”
But deliberate mentoring has purpose – a commitment to contribute, an earnest effort to support another on a learning journey.
I get it! We’re already too busy. We don’t have time to take on another obligation.
But mentoring isn’t an obligation. It’s an opportunity – to reflect, grow, lead, bond, make a difference, and bring joy back to the job.
Purposeful mentoring improves our:
- Patience.
- Compassion.
- Communication.
- Engagement.
- Leadership.
- Humanity.
And it doesn’t require grand gestures. Its power lies in slender but thoughtful interactions.
12 Kernels to Deliberately Mentor
1. Become Self-Aware
- What do you need to work on?
- Where do you want to improve?
- How could mentoring others grow you?
2. Be Vulnerable First
- To build trust with your Mentee, share something personal, like a struggle or an aspiration.
3. Plug In
- Pause to grasp their reality: “What are you feeling good about? What is challenging you right now?”
4. Check Expectations Habitually
- Ask at the beginning, “What do you hope to get out of this conversation?”
- Confirm at the end, “What are we each doing next?”
5. Be the Safe Space
- Mentees want to vent in-the-moment issues and explore solutions… without repercussions.
6. Question Marks Before Periods
- Dig deeper to ensure any story or advice will be valuable.
7. Listen Without Judgment
- There’s nothing broken with the person seeking your guidance. They’re merely finding their way and need a champion.
8. Dig into the Archives
- Pull from your trove of experiences, stories, learnings, resources, and people, and share what is relevant.
9. Actively Pivot
- Notice when you must intentionally shift from listening to encouraging to teaching to exploring to offering advice.
10. Protect Mentee’s Power to Choose
- To offer an idea or recommendation, ask, “What about…?
- To share feedback, try “Would you consider…?”
- Urge your Mentee to evaluate various options.
11. Mind your Mentee
- Follow up, check-in, stay connected
- Look for pertinent articles, podcasts, resources, and people.
12. Root for your Mentee
- Believe in the unearthed potential of your Mentee.
Mentoring is about magnifying possibility and confidence – yours and theirs.
But first, we need you.
© 2024. Ann Tardy and MentorLead. www.mentorlead.com. All Rights Reserved. |
