The Role of the Mentor
Thoughts about Mentoring.
· Mentoring seeks to increase morale, and offer maturity in life and leadership.
· Mentoring ensures the passing of values, traditions and ethics from one generation to the next.
· Mentoring, historically, has been the key element in carrying on our core values.
· Today in our culture, shifting of priorities has weakened our connection to the wisdom and understanding from past generations.
The Objectives of Mentoring
· Mentoring gives energy and the will to reach heights we never imagined.
· Mentors bring more energy into the world, dream greater goals, encourage confidence and initiate the will to succeed.
· Mentoring challenges individuals to maintain the highest possible level of integrity, giving and excellence through building trust with others and forming a network of accountability with them.
· Mentoring seeks to unlock the leadership potential of the mentor and mentee by believing and acting on the greatness in others.
Role of the mentor
· By developing a personal relationship with the mentee, the mentor supports, encourages, teaches, equips, challenges and advises as it relates to personal and leadership maturity.
Benefits for the mentor
· Through mentoring, the mentor has an opportunity to give back to others. Mentors become a part of something larger than themselves - they gain personal satisfaction and a sense of accomplishment by making a significant contribution in the world.
· Mentoring keeps mentors sharp - encourages creativity and allows them to set a continual example in action as well as in words.
· Mentoring encourages opportunities for introspection and reassessment - it gives an opportunity to carry on a legacy.
Qualities exhibited by a mentor.
· Commitment to something greater than themselves.
· Success in living a balanced life.
· Success in leadership.
· The ability to recognize and unlock potential in others.
· Willingness to help set goals and follow through with others.
· The desire and ability to instill confidence in others.
· The ability to listen, teach, coach and advise.
· The ability to be there when needed, and to be absent when not needed.
· The ability to be honest.
· The ability to “select with care” their mentee.
Expectations of a mentor
· An agreed on commitment of time.
· Develop a proactive relationship.
· Provide opportunities and avenues for growth and success.
· Committed to written plans of action
· Follow through and a two-sided evaluation.
· Be a sounding board, not a problem solver.
· Create a life-long vision for learning.
· Help build dreams.
· Share past and present experiences with mentee.
· Focus on independence, not dependency.
· Develop a stepping stone approach.