SKILLS FOR SUCCESSFUL MENTORING - MyLerner

3y ago
61 Views
3 Downloads
516.87 KB
16 Pages
Last View : 1m ago
Last Download : 2m ago
Upload by : Genevieve Webb
Transcription

SKILLS FORSUCCESSFULMENTORING: 4.50Competencies ofOutstanding Mentorsand Menteesby LindabyLinda Phillips-Jones,Phillips-Jones, Ph.D.Ph.D.### CCC502-02CCC502-02

SKILLS FOR SUCCESSFUL MENTORING 2003 by Linda Phillips-Jones, Ph.D.Author, The New Mentors and ProtegesEprocesses can be learned, and relationships canbe better––more enjoyable, productive, andeven time-efficient––as a result.ffective mentoring requires more thancommon sense. Research indicates thatmentors and mentees who develop andmanage successful mentoring partnershipsdemonstrate a number of specific, identifiableskills that enable learning and change to takeplace. This strategy booklet describes theseskills and provides a tool for you to assessyourself informally on each skill.Additional research by The Mentoring Grouprevealed that unless a fairly structured processand specific skills are applied, mediocrementoring relationships occur. Not muchhappens, and participants become frustratedwith their well-intended but haphazard efforts.Worse, disappointed participants becomeconvinced that mentoring doesn’t work.The Identification of Mentoring SkillsFor years, individuals assumed that theprocess of mentoring was somewhat mysterious. These relationships just happened, and“chemistry” had to be present. It was impossible (even somewhat sacrilegious) to analyzeand describe the specifics of what was goingon in these arrangements. Analyzing and puttingnames to behaviors would theoretically kill them.On the positive side, when individuals usethese skills and add structure, important,satisfying changes take place in the lives of bothmentees and mentors.A skill is a learned, observable behavior youperform that indicates (to someone else) howwell you can do something. The set of skillsdescribed here constitutes your overall abilityto mentor and be mentored.Some people were able to find mentoringrelationships, while many individuals wereunaware of how to get started with mentoringand missed out on one of the most powerfuldevelopment strategies ever devised.If you possess these skills to an adequatequality level––and if you use them as frequentlyas called for—your chances of having mutuallysatisfying and productive mentoring relationships will be greatly enhanced. The model onthe next page illustrates the shared core skillsused by both mentors and mentees and theunique skills needed by each group.Linda Phillips-Jones (1977) studied hundreds of mentor-mentee partnerships as wellas individuals unable to identify any mentors intheir lives. The conclusion: mentoring was muchmore examinable and yet more complex thanfirst thought.To help you be a more skilled mentor andmentee, look at the model, review the descriptions of these mentoring skills and thebehaviors that make up each one, and startusing the skills with the people in your life.On the “demystifying” side, Phillips-Jonesdiscovered that effective mentors and menteesuse specific processes and skills throughouttheir relationships. Further, the skills and1

THE MENTORING SKILLS MODELSHARED CORE gIdentifying Goals& Current RealityManagingtheRelationshipCore Mentoring s use appropriate nonverbal languagesuch as looking directly into people’seyes, nodding your head, leaningslightly toward them, frowning, orsmiling where appropriate;Both mentors and mentees should utilize thefollowing core skills in their mentoring partnerships. avoid interrupting mentors and1. Listening Activelymentees while they’re talking;Active listening is the most basic mentoringskill; the other skills build on—and require—it.When you listen well, you demonstrate to yourmentors and mentees that their concerns havebeen heard and understood. As a result, theyfeel accepted by you, and trust builds. The wayyou indicate you’re listening intently is byperforming several observable behaviors. Forexample, if you’re an excellent listener, you: remember and show interest inthings they’ve said in the past (“Bythe way, how did the meeting withyour manager go?”); and summarize the key elements of whateach of you said.Resist the impulse always to turn the conversation to your experiences and opinions andto find immediate solutions to problems you maybe hearing. Listen carefully first; problem solvemuch later. If your mentors and mentees havea habit of immediate problem solving, see if youcan help them be better listeners and problemexplorers. appear genuinely interested by mak-ing encouraging responses such as“Hmmm . . .” and “Interesting . . .” orsometimes reflecting back (paraphrasing) certain comments to showyou’ve grasped the meaning andfeelings behind the message;2

2. Building TrustWhen was the last time you received toomuch praise? If never, you’re not alone. Effectivementors encourage their mentees, which in turnhelps increase the mentees’ confidence andenables them to develop.The more that your mentors and menteestrust you, the more committed they’ll be to yourpartnerships with them, and the more effectiveyou’ll be. This trust develops over time—if yourmentors and mentees observe certainappropriate behaviors on your part. To becometrustable, you must:At the same time, successful menteesmake a point of positively reinforcing theirmentors, which serves to keep the mentorsfocused and motivated. Provide genuine,positive feedback to your mentors and menteeson a regular basis. keep confidences shared by yourmentors and mentees; spend appropriate time together;While there are many ways to encourage,and mentors and mentees can differ in the typesand amounts of encouragement they like, youcan: follow through on your promises tothem; respect your mentors’ and mentees’ compliment your mentoring partnersboundaries;on accomplishments and actions; admit your errors and take responsi-bility for correcting them; and point out positive traits (such as per-severance and integrity) in addition totheir performance and accomplishments; tactfully tell your partners if and whyyou disagree or are dissatisfied withsomething so they’ll know you’rehonest with them. praise them privately, one-on-one;Particularly with cross-difference (e.g.,gender, culture, style, age) mentoring, trustbuilding is crucial and has to be developed overtime. commend them in front of other people(being sensitive to any cultural andstyle preferences regarding publicpraise);3. Encouraging express thanks and appreciation;According to Phillips-Jones’ research, themost valued mentoring skill is giving encouragement. This includes giving your mentoringpartners recognition and sincere positive verbal feedback. write encouraging memos or e-mailand leave complimentary voice mail;and let them know how you use any helpthey give you.Mentors and mentees at several Fortune 500companies revealed in interviews that positiveverbal reinforcement—praise—was rare andeven publicly discounted in their organizations. However, most admitted enjoying beingrecognized for accomplishments and abilitiesand receiving positive feedback—providedsuch attention was sincere and not overdone.Interviewees said they wished such behaviorswere a greater part of their organizational cultures.Be certain that your praise and encouragement are sincere. In mentoring, err in thedirection of too much praise, rather than too little.Some human development experts recommenda ratio of four or five praises for every correctiveremark.3

4. Identifying Goals and CurrentRealityOne effective individual, a former engineerwho was currently a division manager (and amentee in two mentoring partnerships), demonstrated her skill of identifying goals and current reality by writing this:Whether you’re a mentor or mentee, youshould have a personal vision, specific goals,and a good grasp of current reality. As a mentor,be clear on and talk to your mentees about theirvisions, dreams, and career/life goals. They’llbe interested in your current reality (your viewof your strengths and limitations as well as thecurrent reality of situations within yourorganization) and want help recognizing theirsas well.“My long-range goal is to be a general manager or vice president within ten years. Mytechnical skills as an engineer and my skills(as an operations manager) are strong. I nowmanage 75 men and women. I’m weaker insales and marketing.”“I expect to reach my goal by continuing tobuild our business, gaining some strong marketing and sales OJT in a temporary lateralassignment, getting coaching from my two—and probably future—mentors, providing formal mentoring to at least one promising individual a year, and hopefully, running one of ourfactories in about five years. My back-up goalis to leave and start my own company.”As a mentee, you also need this skill. Before asking for help, you should know yourtentative goals, strengths, what developmentyou need, and the specific assistance you’d like.You should discuss these with your mentors.The more aware you are of these, and the moreaccurately you can convey them to potentialhelpers, the more likely they’ll be to assist yournext steps. To demonstrate this mentoring skill:Model this skill by continually working on yourown goals. Show your mentors and menteeshow to take a less than ideal current reality andpull that reality toward their goals. know what’s important to you, whatyou value and desire most;Critical Skills for Mentors recognize areas in which you’re able toperform well, very concrete examplesof behaviors you can perform at thegood-to-excellent level;In addition to the core mentoring skillsdescribed above, mentors use several specificcompetencies in an attempt to help menteesdevelop. identify specific weaknesses or growthareas observed in yourself and onesnoted by others;1. Instructing/Developing Capabilities set tentative one- to five-year goals toProbably all mentors do some teaching orinstructing as part of their mentoring. The skillis especially important in formal mentoring. Thisseldom means that you’ll give formal speechesand lectures. Instead, your instructing will usuallybe more informal—from modeling specificbehaviors to conveying ideas and processesone-on-one, in a tutoring mode. You’ll:reach in your personal life and career;and describe accurately the reality of yourabilities and situations.Effective mentors and mentees are constantly fine-tuning this self-knowledge, incorporating new feedback and observations on aregular basis. Peter M. Senge, in The FifthDiscipline, mentions these skills as part of“personal mastery,” which he calls a journey,not a destination. be a “learning broker” as you assistyour mentees in finding resourcessuch as people, books, software,websites, and other informationsources;4

teach your mentees new knowledge, help them recognize inspiring actionsskills, and attitudes by explaining,giving effective examples, and askingthought-provoking questions;they took in the past and ways to excelagain.It’s always tempting to tell mentees what todo and, in fact, to have them follow in yourfootsteps. Your challenge as a mentor is toensure that your mentees identify and pursuetheir own form of greatness, not necessarilyyours. help your mentees gain broader per-spectives of their organizations including history, values, culture, and politics; demonstrate or model effective beha-viors, pointing out what you’re trying todo; andSome outstanding mentors use language—stories, metaphors, and powerful phrases—toinspire their mentees. Is this a mentoring behavior you could hone during the comingmonths? help them monitor performance andrefocus steps as needed.A key part of your instruction is teaching thementoring process. You can do this by makingprocess comments—pointing out, naming, andotherwise getting your mentees to recognizewhich aspect of mentoring you’re doing at thetime—and why.3. Providing Corrective FeedbackIn addition to giving frequent and sincerepositive feedback, effective mentors should alsobe willing and able to give mentees correctivefeedback.Whoever cares to learn will always find ateacher.— German proverbWhen you observe your mentees makingmistakes or performing in less than desirableways, you should be direct with your mentees,letting them know what you perceive andproviding some better ways for handling thesituations. It will probably be better for them tohear it from you than from others. This is anaspect of the mentor’s protection skill, ManagingRisks, described later.2. InspiringOne skill that separates superb mentorsfrom very good ones is an ability to inspire theirmentees to greatness. By setting an exampleyourself and helping your mentees experienceother inspirational people and situations, you canhelp them onto future paths that excite andmotivate––even beyond their original dreams.Mentors vary in their ability to be inspiring. See ifyou can:One of the first things you can discuss withyour mentees is if and how they’d like to receivethis feedback. People are more willing to hearcorrective feedback if they’ve given permissionand know in advance it’s coming. At the sametime, you’ll be more likely to give feedback ifyou’re invited to do so. Attempt to: do inspiring actions yourself whichchallenge your mentees to improve; help them observe others who are use positive, non-derogatory,inspiring;business-like words and tone of voicewith mentees when their behaviors orproducts aren’t satisfactory; arrange other inspirational experiencesfor them; give corrective feedback in private; challenge them to rise above the mun-dane and do important things in life;and give the feedback as soon as feasibleafter the performance;5

give specific (as opposed to vague)Business Risksfeedback on behaviors; andDealing incorrectly with customersMissing deadlinesUnderestimating project costsDoing something unethicalCompromising on quality offer useful suggestions for them to trynext time, offering to be a resourcewhen that time occurs.Use the Encouraging skill much more oftenthan the skill of Providing Corrective Feedback.Career RisksOffending certain peopleTaking the wrong positionStaying in a job too longNot being able to sell others on one’sown ideasFailing to learn and improve4. Managing RisksAnother distinguishing characteristic ofeffective mentors is their willingness and ability to protect their mentees from disasters. Oneof your tasks is to prevent your mentees frommaking unnecessary mistakes as they learn totake appropriate risks. This skill of ManagingRisks builds closely on the core skill of BuildingTrust, identified earlier. Some refer to this riskmanagement process as helping mentees “stepout on the branch, then fly when ready.” You’ll:Some of these risks your mentees will recognize, and others only you—with your wisdomand experience—recognize. Still other challenges will seem more risky to your menteesthan they really are. Offer to help your mentees identify and determine how to handlethese risks with recognition, prevention, andrecovery strategies. help your mentees recognize the risks5. Opening Doorsinvolved in actions and projects,including some risks (and mistakes)you’ve experienced;Mentors are usually in a position to providevisibility for their mentees. This means openingthe right doors that allow them to meet peopleand to demonstrate to different audiences whatthey can do. Research has shown that whenmentors vouch for mentees in this way, theirwork is much more likely to be well received. Toopen doors, you’ll: make suggestions to help them avoidmajor mistakes (business, career,financial, personal, and other) injudgment or action; help them learn to prepare well, getwise counsel, then trust their owndecisions and actions; and put in a good word to people who if requested in difficult situations,could help your mentees reachdesired goals;intervene as your mentees’ advocatewith others. personally introduce your mentees toMentees and mentors in many corporationshave identified Managing Risks as an increasingly important mentoring skill.appropriate contacts; make certain your mentees’ abilitiesare noticed by others;Typical Risks give your mentees assignments orYour mentees probably face business risksand career risks, potential danger zones inwhich they could make large errors and possibly jeopardize their positions, careers, ororganizations. Here are some examples:opportunities that enable them tointeract with important colleagues,suppliers, or customers; and6

suggest other resources for your negotiate the mentoring arrangementsmentees to pursue.with your mentors, including agreements on goals, expectations, lengthof the relationships, confidentiality,feedback processes, and meetingschedules.You’ll probably open doors for your menteesonly when you believe they’re ready to go throughthem. Since your reputation may be affected byyour doing this, you’ll first want to see yourmentees as capable and trustworthy. Explainthis process to your mentees as part of thedevelopment effort.For detailed tips on acquiring appropriatementors, see Strategies for Getting theMentoring You Need. For more ideas on careerself-reliance, read the excellent book, We AreAll Self-Employed, by Cliff Hakim. (Both arelisted in Resources.)One mentee raved about how his mentoropened numerous doors for him. The mentortook him to two key meetings, allowed him toco-author (with the mentor) several papers, setup an opportunity for the mentee to make avery visible oral presentation to a group ofdecision makers, and nominated him for ahighly competitive leadership development program within the organization.2. Learning QuicklyMentors enjoy working with mentees wholearn quickly and take seriously any efforts toteach them. Typically, your mentors want you tobe a “quick study.” You should work hard atdirectly and indirectly learning everything you canas rapidly as possible. Try to:Critical Skills for Mentees apply the knowledge and skills pre-In addition to the core skills described earlier,mentees need to be competent in several areas.sented to you, and be ready to tell yourmentors how you applied them;1. Acquiring Mentors observe carefully and learn indirectlyfrom the modeled actions of yourmentors and others;Becoming a successful mentee isn’t apassive experience. In the spirit of career selfreliance, you should be very active in selectingand negotiating with several mentors who canhelp you succeed. Good mentors now have awide choice of potential mentees, so you mustskillfully handle the acquisition process. Forexample, be able to: study materials (those given by yourmentors and materials you seek out)related to your development areas; integrate new things you learn into yourown conceptual framework for problem solving; and identify a desirable pool of individuals receive feedback nondefensively. (Youwho potentially can provide you withmentoring;should ask for specifics and beappreciative of the feedback. If yourmentors have misperceived a fact,diplomatically tell them.) actively search for several mentors; “sell” potential helpers on the idea ofAs your mentoring relationships proceedand mature, you’ll probably have ample opportunities to debate and disagree with yourmentors. In the beginning, you should display astrong learning attitude, be willing to considernew ideas, and show an openness to be provenwrong.providing mentoring to you (in additionto—or as opposed to—others theymight help); convey your specific needs and goalsto prospective mentors; and7

take informed risks (stretch beyondUnclear about how to become a “quickstudy”? Try what one dedicated mentee did.She earned a degree in education and Englishthen decided to go back to college and enterpre-med. The math, physics, and chemistrywere daunting—her weakest areas by far. Notwanting to fail, she spent at least eight hoursevery day

Core Mentoring Skills Both mentors and mentees should utilize the following core skills in their mentoring part-nerships. 1.Listening Actively Active listening is the most basic mentoring skill; the other skills build on—and require—it. When you listen well, you demonstrate to your mentors and mentees that their concerns have

Related Documents:

Bruksanvisning för bilstereo . Bruksanvisning for bilstereo . Instrukcja obsługi samochodowego odtwarzacza stereo . Operating Instructions for Car Stereo . 610-104 . SV . Bruksanvisning i original

10 tips och tricks för att lyckas med ert sap-projekt 20 SAPSANYTT 2/2015 De flesta projektledare känner säkert till Cobb’s paradox. Martin Cobb verkade som CIO för sekretariatet för Treasury Board of Canada 1995 då han ställde frågan

service i Norge och Finland drivs inom ramen för ett enskilt företag (NRK. 1 och Yleisradio), fin ns det i Sverige tre: Ett för tv (Sveriges Television , SVT ), ett för radio (Sveriges Radio , SR ) och ett för utbildnings program (Sveriges Utbildningsradio, UR, vilket till följd av sin begränsade storlek inte återfinns bland de 25 största

Hotell För hotell anges de tre klasserna A/B, C och D. Det betyder att den "normala" standarden C är acceptabel men att motiven för en högre standard är starka. Ljudklass C motsvarar de tidigare normkraven för hotell, ljudklass A/B motsvarar kraven för moderna hotell med hög standard och ljudklass D kan användas vid

LÄS NOGGRANT FÖLJANDE VILLKOR FÖR APPLE DEVELOPER PROGRAM LICENCE . Apple Developer Program License Agreement Syfte Du vill använda Apple-mjukvara (enligt definitionen nedan) för att utveckla en eller flera Applikationer (enligt definitionen nedan) för Apple-märkta produkter. . Applikationer som utvecklas för iOS-produkter, Apple .

mentoring relationship, whether formal or informal. Use it to plan your mentoring interactions. (A companion guide, Mentoring Guide: A Guide for Protégés, is also available. See Appendix III.) Although mentors can be sought for various spheres of one’s life, this guide focuses on mentoring within a professional context.

Mentoring a new Toastmasters club is similar in many ways to mentoring a single person. Mentors are the advisors and tutors for new clubs and have a great effect on the degree to which a new club succeeds. Benefits for Mentors New clubs are not the only beneficiaries of the mentoring relationship. Mentoring allows you to Share your expertise

The colonial response to these acts is really the start of the American Revolution. First Massachusetts passed a set of resolutions calling for colonists to: one, disobey the Intolerable Acts, two, stop paying taxes, and three, prepare for war. And in September 1774, a group of delegates from twelve of the thirteen colonies - Georgia! - met in Philadelphia to coordinate the resistance of the .