All of us have assumed different roles in our lives and belonging to different strata of life, the most important thing that matters is how best we can communicate and transfer the knowledge we have to others and develop good mentor-mentee relationships. It deprives them of the sleep, putting laborious effort to be at a certain height, working on the extended hours without being paid anything extra. Similarly, you might have encountered a person who has been your mentor, be it your boss or your colleague, you might have found that without certain qualities, there is always something lacking. But there is need to understand who is the better mentor in these days of an overwhelming number of employees and those with the experience often find themselves transferring nothing to their peers.
Here are a few practical ways one can follow to improve one’s mentoring skills.
1. Preparedness
Whenever you are assuming yourself as a mentor, or you are invited to a certain event that requires you to be a mentor, it matters a lot how well you are prepared to take on the mentees. The way you communicate, the message you deliver, the ideas you share, the thoughts you transfer and every tiny bit of information that you provide your peers with, they all are effective only when you have prepared well for the event. Planning before the execution is one of the most critical aspects of any project. Same goes for mentorship seminars. Your ideas must be well connected, and there mustn’t be any deviation from the usual flow of ideas.
2. Effective communication
Communication is the only medium that helps connect two people, in fact, it interlinks the thoughts of two minds. Without proper communication, you cannot expect to have substantial progress in your mentoring sessions. If you are not able to impart your knowledge and unable to share your experience with others, then mentoring will be highly ineffective. Effective communication demands conciseness, clarity, concreteness and correctness of your ideas.
3. Honesty
Being honest with your mentee is also an essential part of mentorship. You have to be honest while being a diplomat at the same time. You need to step into the shoes of your mentee and understand his / her concerns. Anything left unanswered or unattended may leave your mentee with sheer trouble. Allow them to be candid and be straightforward with you and dispense all the formalities and allow them to throw questions randomly at you.
4. Mental ideal/hero
Remember you are the mental idea and hero for your mentees. Your actions, attitude, behaviour, style and every aspect of your personality cast a lasting impression on your mentee.
5. Push to the limits
Give your mentees a hard time to the extent they don’t break. Test them under compelling circumstances and let them know that this is only for personality and professional development and will play an important role in carving their future.
6. No-compromise policy
Do not compromise on trivial things. Everything in that environment matters a lot. No matter how small a certain thing is, it is important and to let it go over will have a deleterious effect. Do not sugar-coat your message rather be simple and straightforward.
Some references
Jayson DeMers. 7 ways to become an effective mentor. Retrieved. 15 December 2017, from the web
Jeffery Dauksevich. How to be an effective Mentor. Retrieved 15 December 2017, from the web
