[#CoachTom Commentary] The role of a mentor is to aid the mentee in reaching his goals. While the mentor can benefit from leading others, the relationship between the mentor and the mentee should largely be mentee-centered. Hence, the mentor should listen, guide, and even challenge the mentee to do his best in his job from a place of experience and expertise.
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The mentoring relationship within the Workplace Context is typically formal. The organization sets up a model and guidelines for mentoring to occur, and there are clear parameters to adhere to. Mentoring is an interactive relationship wherein both parties can contribute to each other’s growth as a person. One should take note that mentoring is different from counselling or coaching. Mentoring taps on the experience, skill and knowledge of the mentor to guide the mentee towards personal and professional development.
Mentoring requires the commitment of time and effort between the two parties to be effective. This type of mentoring program can be for a specific project or for a specified time-period. The first step is finding a suitable Mentor. Having the wrong mentor can be even worse than having no mentor at all. For this reason, everyone should take the time and effort to look for a mentor that will suit their needs, personality, and learning style within the workplace operations. You need to look within yourself and the environment around you; then, ask yourself what you really want to learn. Oftentimes, you need to consider the following questions before deciding on a mentor:
- Would the mentor provide me with good and accurate information?
- Would he support me in reaching my goals and objectives?
- Would he respect my dreams, my decisions, and my goal in life?
- Would he challenge me when it is necessary?
- Can the mentor actually be trusted?
- Am I willing to listen to this mentor’s ideas and suggestions?
Asking these questions before you commit to a mentoring program is essential for you to reap the best possible benefit. It is also important to have a clear communication line between you and the mentor. Even at the start of the mentoring program, you already need to specify your expectations and your goal so that the mentor will know which direction to take.
Coach Tom is an Official Member of the Forbes Coaches Council (2022). Check out the various articles by #CoachTom on leadership, organization transformation, strategy and coaching at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescoachescouncil/people/thomaslim
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