Mentoring: Sharing Your Gift of Leadership

A number of successful business executives have shared the great benefit they received earlier in their careers from a more senior leader in their company who took the time to mentor them. In fact, in my former company, Johnson & Higgins, I can think of any number of great people who had the benefit of the interest and attention given to them by our office managers, regional managers, and executive committee members, who were virtually all servant leaders and role models. People were succeeding in good part thanks to this mentoring. It was fun to be a part of such a culture

Mentoring is a genuine commitment to helping the development of perhaps a less knowledgeable and experienced colleague. At its best, mentoring is a collaboration that is truly shared, enriching the lives of both. Done well by both the mentor and mentee, the relationship will have an important impact and result in significantly enhancing the mentee’s effectiveness in her/his company.

There is no one set approach to mentoring. It works best when mentors feel a strong sense of responsibility and have an attitude of truly wanting to help with another’s success. Mentoring works especially well when the relationship is “organic,” i.e., when two people naturally form an informal but intentional relationship. Both parties have an obligation and need to speak up promptly if this is not working as one of them would like.

The tone of the relationship is important. The capacity of the mentor to influence rests heavily on her/his ability to relate in a non-authoritative way, while guiding the mentee’s learning and growth.

It is helpful to begin with an assessment of the mentee’s competencies and areas of potential growth, for example:

• Readiness to be mentored?
• Receptivity to you as a mentor?
• Do they have self-awareness and relationship management intelligence?
• Can they articulate their strengths and their vulnerabilities?
• Are they receptive to hearing about their blind spots and biases?

Ideally, you and the person you will mentor both have the humility to be vulnerable and will honestly share thoughts about potential areas of growth. Humility is the foundation of growth!

Mentoring works best when the person is ready, accepts that seeking continuous improvement is a strength, not a weakness, and has the motivation and drive to work toward specific goals.

If this works as you intend, and it certainly can if you commit to it and follow through, there should be personal satisfaction and fulfillment for you, as mentor, and of course, as well for the mentee. By helping bring out the best in a person, she/he will have a greater ability to be a leader, a great teammate, and to have a positive effect on your organizational culture and your company’s success.

Additional guidelines for mentoring:

• Set expectations and goals together.
• Be open and honest with each other about progress, and how the relationship is working.
• Recognize that there must be compatibility, respect, trust and available time.
• Trust can be enhanced if both you and your mentee are comfortable allowing yourselves to be vulnerable with one another.
• As a mentor, recognize the need to be both challenging and encouraging.

It is certainly true that everyone is already busy. Taking on a mentoring relationship is an added and important responsibility. Yet, even a small time commitment can reap huge rewards. You will discover a deep sense of satisfaction, and you will likely further enhance your own feedback and relationships skills, and continue your own learning and growth. We can all learn from one another – an important principle of a healthy organizational culture!

Being a mentor does not come with recognition. Definitely not! There should be none. We do it selflessly as we want to be helpful, to share our gifts and insight with another(s). Yet, done well, it brings us self-satisfaction.

Is there someone(s) that you see in your company, at your church, at places you volunteer, and or in your community that you respect and feel has the potential to be a leader? Could you be the leader who could help unlock that potential?

Leaders raise up other leaders!