Did you know one of the first people Michelle Obama mentored as a lawyer in Chicago was a fellow graduate of Harvard Law School named Barack Obama: “I made sure that he met the partners that he was working with; I had to take him out to lunch a couple of times” she has said during press interviews about life before becoming First Lady and wife of the world’s most powerful leader in the world.
That was back in the late 1980’s. Fast forward 20 years and in 2009, First Lady Michelle Obama not only married her mentee, but she watched him reach his potential and become President!
In 2009 she then launched a leadership and mentoring initiative for women across the USA which was soon followed by President Obama’s launch in 2014 of the My Brother’s Keeper initiative, a public, private and philanthropic effort to support boys and young men of colour in the USA in reaching their full potential. Please take a look at it, as it’s truly inspirational and massively motivating, who things which are key for a mentee.
Mrs. Obama said that she and her husband, President Barack Obama, grew up in modest circumstances without a lot of access to power. But they did have parents and other people who had consistent interests in their lives. She listed her mother, neighbours and 5th-grade teacher as important mentors in her youth.
So if you are a mentee, please take a look at 5 Top Tips that can make your mentoring experience a success. Who knows, one day YOU could be a future world or business leader!
1. Mentee drives it
Why?
Good mentors want to share their knowledge and experience, but they are usually very busy people. At the same time they also realise it is important to set aside real quality time to ensure that mentees get real value from their sessions.
Past experience in other organisations shows that mentoring works best when the mentee is proactive and takes responsibility for the practical things.
For example, setting the dates for the sessions; flagging up beforehand the kind of issues they would like to discuss; identifying their own potential solutions before meeting their mentor etc.
2. Mentee chooses
Why?
The mentor must have credibility in the eyes of the mentee, otherwise they will not be open to any of their knowledge, experience and advice.
Many factors can be considered, but most of all, there should be a strong “values fit” between the two parties.
The mentor must also be somebody whom the mentee is prepared to learn from, however, the mentee must have final say about which ideas they want to take on board.
Good mentors will always have a demand for their services. So as the saying goes, “When the mentor is ready – the mentee will appear.”
3. Mentoring is regular
Why?
Busy people can easily get sucked into “fire-fighting” and catching up on yesterday’s business. Everybody needs to take time out to take a more strategic view of their challenges and possibilities. People who do this are more able to shift from being reactive to proactive,
Mentoring is one vehicle for helping people to make this happen. It is therefore important for mentees to schedule specific times for mentoring sessions that enable them to find creative solutions to their challenges.
How often? A 2 hour (max) session every quarter is recommended as a minimum, however the exact frequency should be determined by the mentor and mentee.
4. Mentoring is confidential
The topics covered in mentoring sessions remain totally confidential.
Why?
The whole point of mentoring is to create a safe environment in which mentees are willing to candidly discuss and explore creative solutions to their challenges.
They must therefore feel able to openly share ideas and concerns in the knowledge that these will not be reported back. Once confidentiality is broken, the mentoring relationship breaks down.
5. Mentors are trained & motivated
Why?
Mentors must understand the organisation’s strategic rationale for mentoring, but more importantly, be keen to become involved – willing volunteers (no press ganging!) who genuinely want to support the process.
Being a successful manager doesn’t necessarily equate to being a good mentor!
Mentors should be trained to run effective mentoring sessions and then strongly encouraged to apply these techniques in a way that make full use of their own personality, strengths and style.
Are YOU a mentee? Want to learn how to make the most of working with your mentor?
Click here to book to register to join our Mentee Skills Virtual Training Course on Thursday, October 29, 2015 – 18:00:00 PM BST – 19:30:00 PM BST
Or for more Top Tips on mentoring or a variety of other workplace issues, visit the Creativedge ‘Top 10 Tips’ mobile App available for iPhone and Android smartphones:-
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