Being a mentor is no easy matter. The mentor has so many things to think about, ‘Am I being too authoritative?’ ‘Am I overstepping?’ “Am I not trusting enough?” These are very relevant questions for a mentor to be asking. The answers to these, one will only arrive at through experience, certain tried & tested methods of working and many times one’s instinct tells one better. But nevertheless, there are ways in which a mentor can put the mentee at ease without compromising on professional needs.
Always Ready To Recalculate: As mentors, we want our mentees to grow and eventually contribute more to the company. And so, we start paying attention to their learning curve and want them to pick up new stuff and grow as much as they can. For eg, if you have a course which you want them to take, you go ahead and buy the course and assign a timeline for its completion. But after a considerable amount of time has passed you realise they’ve not even begun the course, how would you react? Before you jump to conclusions and lose your mind, take a step back and think about the possible reasons for your mentees to not take up the course. Family emergencies? Loaded with work assignments? Health Issues? Or just lack of time management skills? Schedule a meeting with them to tell them more about the course, how it can help them and the company and the core benefits of the course. Ask them if they’re having trouble with timelines and end with asking them what would be the perfect time for them to start and finish the course.
Keeping Things Professional: When you care about your mentee so much, it’s but natural to get a little personal with your relationship. But the trick is in keeping it professional even while you spend so much time together, thinking & doing. You can’t force the change you want to see, change happens in an environment that’s open, free & trusting. Your role as a mentor is to model not push the change you want to see. Your mentee needs to know that you’ll be there when they need you and at the same time that you’ll be walking away eventually. Nagging, pushing, forcing will strain your relationship with your mentee. If they’re unwilling to steer the boat for change with you, you can’t take it personally, you’ll just have to trust them to turn around. Be more encouraging, especially during feedback time. Youngsters especially have a hard time taking criticism constructively. Always remember the protagonist in the feedback process, is the Mentee. It’s the mentee’s reaction to the feedback that will decide the future. It’s the mentee who decides how to much to let in and how much to change thereafter. The mentor in a very easy, unassuming and non-judgemental must lay out the suggestions in a way that the mentee feels no threat in letting them into his/her mind & heart
Trusting Yourself & Mentee: Your mentee will the first one to sense distrust or a lack of confidence on your part and so no matter what, you’ll have to keep trust alive in yourself and in your mentee. Tell them they can do it, point out their strengths and how they can optimise them. Trust & confidence come with time, but as a mentor, you have to keep your mind and heart open from the beginning itself, if you want your mentee to begin with a positive mind.
