“Mentoring is a brain to pick, an ear to listen, and a push in

the right direction. — John Crosby

MENTORSHIP MODULE
- Edggi
 A SNEAK PEEK INTO MENTORING
WHAT IS MENTORING?
’the answer’ that is right for them. The
mentoring relationship can be both short
and long term. It may develop to focus on a
particular issue or it may be one that lasts
Mentoring comes from a mythical for years covering a range of issues.
character in the Greek Mythology who was Typically, the mentor and mentee meet at
a loyal friend and adviser to Odysseus, king designated times and places to discuss
of Ithaca. He trained his son Telemachus, issues: make plans to resolve and then
while Odysseus was away fighting the review. The formal vs. informal nature of the
Trojan War. Mentoring is a highly valuable sessions is down to those involved, however
development activity implemented in many each session must have a [Link]
organisations. At the core of the activity is purpose of mentoring is to tap into the
the relationship between the mentor and existing knowledge, skills, and experience of
the ​mentee, where the development of the high performing employees and transfer
mentee ​is the key focus. The development these skills to newer or less experienced
needs satisfied through the relationship employees in order to advance their
can vary in focus from guidance on settling careers. The goals and outcomes of
into a new organisation, performance mentoring programs within organisations
improvement to career management will differ depending on the parameters of
the relationship. However, the essential
The main point with mentoring is that the
focus is determined by the mentee. They purpose of mentoring stays the sam
must lead in identifying issues and, with
guidance from the mentor, resolving them.
The mentor is not there to provide ‘the
answers’, but to guide the mentee towards
 WHO IS A MENTOR?
A mentor is a person who has
WHAT MAKES A GOOD
professional and life experience and who MENTOR?
voluntarily agrees to ​help a mentee
develop skiIls, competencies, or ​goals. The
knowledge, [Link] resources a • A desire to help others succeed and
mentor shares depend on the format and pass on information as well as
goals of a ​specific mentoring relationship. exchange feedback
A mentor may ​share with a mentee (or • A desire to work with others and
protege)information​ ​about his or her own
engage on an interpersonal level
career path, as well as​ ​provide guidance,
motivation, emotional support, and role • A desire to learn and motivate others
modeling. A mentor may ​help with • Good listening, questioning and
exploring careers, setting goaIs, communication skills
developing contacts, and identifying • Knowledge of the industry,
resources. The mentor role may change organization,or field in which the
as the needs of the mentee change.
mentee works or aspires to work in
• Self-confidence and self-awareness
Mentors certainly are expected to be a bound by strong ethics
role model for mentees in a variety of
• Openness, honesty and being patient
areas, such as relating to peers. work-life
balance, and ethics, ​but merely being a as well as empathetic to the people at
role model does not make you​ a mentor. large
Being a mentor means interacting with a
mentee and providing
[Link],and feedback to the
mentee- in other words, it requires
involvement with the mentee.​ ​Even
though the concept of mentoring is
simple, successful implementation can be
challenging.
Characteristics of effective mentoring
includes "the ability and​ willingness to”

• value the mentee as a person

• develop mutual trust and respect
• maintain confidentiality
• listen both to what is being said and
how it ​is said
• help the mentee solve his or her own
problem
 STAGES OF Coaching may be active within the mentee's
organisation when a mentor assigns
challenging assignments to the mentee,

MENTORING maximises the mentee's exposure and

visibility in the organisation, and actively
sponsors the mentee through promotions
and recognition.
1. Initiation Stage Mentors outside of the mentee's
organisation can also provide valuable
advice on how to thrive and survive;
In the initiation stage, two individuals enter although they lack organisational power to
into a mentoring relationship. For directly intervene on behalf of the mentee.
informal mentoring, the matching process The psychosocial function emerges after
occurs​ ​through professional or social the mentor and mentee have established
interactions between potential mentors an interpersonal bond. Within this
and mentees. Potential mentees search for function,the mentor accepts and confirms
experienced, successful people whom they the mentee's professional identity and the
admire and perceive as good role models. relationship matures into a strong
Potential mentors search for talented friendship
people who are "coachable." Both parties
seek a positive, enjoyable relationship that
would justify the extra time and effort
required in mentoring.
3. Separation Stage
The separation stage generally describes
Formal mentoring programs manage the
the end of a mentoring relationship. The
matching process instead of letting these
relationship may end for a number of
relationships emerge on their own. Good
matching programs are sensitive to reasons. There may be nothing left to learn,
demographic variables as well as common The mentee may want to establish an
independent identity, or the mentor may
professional interests. The assignment of a
send the mentee off on his or her own the
mentee to a mentor varies greatly across
formal mentoring programs. way a parent sends off an adult child. If the
relationship's end is not accepted by both
parties, this stage can be stressfulI with one
Mentors may review mentee profiles and
party unwilling to accept the loss.
select their mentees or program
Problems between the mentor and mentee
administrators may match mentors and
arise when only one party wants to
mentees. Regardless of the method, a good
terminate the mentoring relationship.
formal mentoring program would require
Mentees may feel abandoned, betrayed, or
both parties to explore the relationship
unprepared if they perceive the separation
and evaluate the appropriateness of the
to be premature.
mentor-mentee match.

2. Cultivation Stage 4. Re-definition Stage

During this stage, both mentor and mentee
The cultivation stage is the primary stage recognize that their relationship can
of learning and development. Assuming a continue but that it will not be the same as
successful initiation stage, during the their mentoring relationship. If both parties
cultivation stage, the mentee learns​ ​from successfully negotiate through the
the mentor. Two broad mentoring separation stage, the relationship can
functions are at their peak during this evolve into a collegial relationship or social
stage.​ ​The career-related function often friendship.
emerges first when the mentor coaches Unlike the cultivation stage, the focus of
the mentee on how to work effectively and the relationship is no longer centered on
efficiently. the mentee's career development
 Resource based mentoring
TYPES OF It is fairly similar to one-to-one mentoring.

MENTORING The most important difference is that

mentors and mentees are not interviewed
and matched by the person in charge of
the program. In this version mentors agree
Formal Mentoring to have their names added to a list that
mentees are able to choose from. The fact
that the person requiring advice is
In case of formal mentoring, there​ ​will be a initiating the interaction guarantees their
structured program to match mentors and engagement in the program but there is
mentees and a thorough​ ​analysis is done the risk of a mismatched mentor-mentee
throughout the course of mentorship.​ Such
pairing​.
a setup ​provides accountability based on
formal contract between mentor and
mentee Group Mentoring
Natural Mentorship As the name says, group mentoring
requires a mentor to work with several
mentees at the same time. This is a mix of
When a mentor sees something in an
senior and peer mentoring as everybody
individual and volunteers to take him as his
gives opinions and shares experience.
mentee, it becomes a natural mentoring.
However, as is often the case with groups, it
Reason for such a relationship could be
proves rather difficult to schedule meetings
either the mentor sees himself in the
that accommodate everybody. Also, the
mentee or shares something in common.
personal relationship is lost so many
organizations choose to combine this type
Peer Mentoring with one to one mentoring

If your friend who is in the same stage of

career and envisions similar career goals, a
mutual mentor-mentee relationship can
Training based Mentoring
foster. Mutual support, empathy and This version combines mentoring with a
advice can flow in this arrangement and specific training program. A mentor is
help the stakeholders involved
assigned to a mentee in order to help him
develop skills and competencies that are
Situational Mentoring also covered in the courses the mentee is
enrolled in. Training-based mentoring is
This is a common type of mentorship where however rather limited as its focus is the
a mentor teaches a certain skill/trade to subjects being taught and not the overall
his mentee​. ​This is common at many stages development of the mentee.
in our professional career

Executive Mentoring
One-to-one mentoring
What this model ensures is the creation of
This is the most prevalent mode of a mentoring culture within the
mentoring​ ​as it pairs one mentor with one organization.
mentee. ​ ​It allows for the two to develop a Executives who have obviously reached a
personal relationship in which the mentor high level of success and expertise get to
is able to provide individual guidance and share their knowledge and experience
support to the mentee. making sure that all they know does not
leave the company when they retire.
Executive mentoring works best one to one,
especially in the cases when the mentor is
actually grooming the mentee to take over
 PLACES TO FIND Volunteering Events
A MENTOR Volunteering events and NGOs are another
great platform to meet like-minded
professionals -- especially those who have
retired wealthy and are looking for ways to
Online Mentorship Platforms give back to the society and help budding
professionals and entrepreneurs kick-off
Multiple online platforms provide their dream projects.
dedicated service of pairing professionals
and
students with potential mentors. Edggi in
Industry Meetups
one such example. With usually no cost.
If you're looking for mentorship and career
you'll be able to sign up, find prospective
advice in a specific industry. there's no
mentors in your area of expertise, chat with
better place to go than an industry-centric
them and potentially meet them in person
meetup. These include conferences,
to begin an extended partnership
networking events. speaker series,
tradeshows and informal meetups.
Professional Networking
Events Social Media Platforms
Conclaves, conferences, seminars, business Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, Quora etc.
events, workshops etc. provide a great provide an excellent opportunity to
opportunity for networking but also act as connect with people and hence provide a
a platform to meet your potential mentor. vast pool of professionals to choose your
Business leaders are always in search of next mentor from.
new contacts. They can be either their With keyword searches, you can find
clients, employees or prospective business professionals that match your criteria, and
partners. Professional networking events by monitoring followers and engagement
provide an opportunity to connect with level, one can determine a person's
people from all walks of life, experience and reputation
areas of expertise. and willingness to talk to others.

Fitness Classes and Groups Any Public Location

For the past couple years, leaders around
Do you think it's impossible to meet a high-
the world have stressed upon maintaining
quality mentor on the street? You'd be
a surprised. Experienced entrepreneurs are
healthy life and a healthy balance between ordinary people too. They use public
work, mind and body. Professionals have transportation, walk around downtown, go
started taking up physical activities to stay
to restaurants and bars and look like
active, maintain their health and relieve
anyone else. Next time when you go out,
stress. Ventures such as [Link] and Gold
take the time to talk to more people and
Gym provide state-of-the-art facilities.
enquire who they are and what they do.
Besides just acting as a place for building a
Sooner or later, you'll bump into someone
healthy body and mind, these places also who can be your next potential mentor.
act as a platform to find new contacts and And,
meet like minded people.
even if you do not find your mentor, you'll
meet someone who knows someone who
can be.
 STEPS TO FIND A
MENTOR

1. Find someone you want to 5. Follow up after the

be like meeting
Don’t just find someone who has a job you This is not like [Link]'s Okay to appear
want or a platform that you covet. Find overly ambitious. You want this person to
someone that is like you, someone with a know that you’re serious. It’s appropriate to
similar set of strengths and skills you want follow up immediately but start by thanking
to emulate. Spend enough time finding the your prospective mentor for his time. A
right person. In fact, have several good way to do this is via email or text
prospective candidates before committing message, so that you don’t appear
to a single mentor. overbearing. This is also a good time to
mention that you’d like to do it again. If he
reciprocates, offer to get something on the
2. Study the person calendar.

Follow his social media handles and read

his blogs, books, articles (if any) to get 6. Let the relational flow
acquainted with his thought process, skills,
strengths and expertise. Try to connect
organically
with people who know him. Make sure you
understand his strengths and weaknesses We sometimes place too high of
and consequently set your expectations expectations on mentoring. We want to give
realistically. it a name, because it gives us a sense of
status and importance. But really it’s just a
relationship. Mentoring is organic. It’s
3. Make the ‘ask’ healthy to let it grow like any other
relationship — over time and based on
mutual respect and [Link]’t force it. Give
Don’t ask for the person to “be your mentor” it time, it needs to grow.
right off the bat. That’s a big ask. Rather,
ask for an initial meeting — something
informal, over coffee maybe. Keep it short. 7. Ask for feedback
Come with questions that you’re prepared
to ask, but let the conversation flow Feedback can be hard, but it’s good. As
relationally. your relationship with your mentor
progresses, this will be the #1 way you
grow..While asking for feedback may
4. Evaluate the fruit initially feel awkward, eventually it will
become almost second-nature. You will find
yourself thirsting for those words you used
After meeting, evaluate if you wish to spend
to fear.
more time with this person? Did he begin
the meeting by encouraging you or telling
you what to do? Did he ask questions, or
wait to provide answers? If not, feel free to
8. Commit to the process
let the relationship go and seek out
someone [Link], If it went You can’t be mentored in a summer. That’s
well, then immediately put together a an internship. Mentoring takes real time
follow-up plan. and real [Link] order for it to be a real
mentorship,you have to commit to the
relationship.
 both personal and academic issues

MENTORING: • Identifying goals and establish a sense of

direction

BENEFICIAL
• Gaining valuable insights into the next
stage of your career

EITHER WAYS Benefits for mentors

Mentoring is more than the transfer of
The role of a mentor is to encourage the advice, knowledge and insights. The
personal and professional development of relationship offers mutual benefits for
a mentee through the sharing of mentors willing to invest their time in
knowledge, expertise and experience. developing another professional as well as
the personal satisfaction of sharing their
The mentoring relationship is built on skills and experience with a willing learner.
mutual trust, respect and communication, Being involved in mentoring also provides
and involves both parties meeting regularly some tangible benefits that can reward
to exchange ideas, discuss progress and mentors professionally.
set goals for further development.
Some key benefits for mentors include:

Benefits for mentee • Recognition as a subject matter expert

and leader
Being mentored is one of the most valuable • Exposure to fresh perspectives, ideas and
and effective development opportunities approaches
you can offer employees. Having the
• Extension of their professional
encouragement and support of an
experienced mentor can provide a mentee development record
with a broad range of personal and • Opportunity to reflect on their own goals
professional benefits, which ultimately lead and practices
to improved performance in the workplace. • Development of their personal leadership
and mentoring styles
For mentees, some key benefits of business • Develop leadership and management
mentoring include: qualities
• Engage in a volunteering opportunity,
• Exposure to new ideas and ways of
valued by employers
thinking
• Enhancement of CV and increased
• Advice on developing strengths and
networking opportunities
overcoming weaknesses
• Guidance on professional development
and advancement
• Increased visibility and recognition within
the company
• Opportunity to develop new skills and
knowledge
• Learning from the experiences of others.
• Increased social and academic
confidence
• Becoming more empowered in taking
decisions
• Developing interpersonal relationships
• Developing strategies for dealing with
 to serve in this capacity, shifting the nature of

MAKING its work with the mentee while retaining its

original members.
Because cruise teams come after launch and its

MENTORSHIP A attendant professional successes, they typically

include more visible experts in the mentee’s

TEAM EFFORT
field; people who can serve as sponsors to make
a mentee more visible within an organization’s
walls. Cruise teams not only ensure that a
mentee’s work becomes more widely recognized,
they make sure that a mentee is on track for
promotion, grants or other requirements for
While one-on-one mentoring remains
expanding a robust career. In doing so, cruise
critical, mentees also need mentoring
teams safeguard the mentorship pipeline by
teams that evolve over time. In our
transforming mentees and mentors that can
experience, mentees need three different
join launch teams.
types of teams which come into play at
various career stages: the launch team,
cruise team, and boost team. Let’s look at The Boost Team
each.
Boost teams help further advance the

The Launch Team

mentee’s career and prevent it from
plateauing. The work of a boost team is to
define novel leadership or career goals
This team is the first and arguably most critical and map out a trajectory for achieving
one for any mentee. Its goal is simple: help them.
launch a mentee’s career by making sure that
he or she meets short-term milestones. In Boost teams differ from cruise and launch
academia, these milestones commonly include teams in several ways. First, they are often
defining a niche or focus area, developing and composed of connectors – senior
attaining early metrics of success, and being individuals who can help mentees
socialized to an organization’s culture and associate with leaders outside of their
norms. Launch teams meet at regular intervals immediate social and professional
(commonly every other month) and have limited networks. This is particularly important for
life spans – often just two to three years. helping the mentee find, or even create,
roles that provide leadership opportunities.
These teams are led by a primary mentor who is Second, unlike launch and cruise teams
the most responsible for overseeing a mentee’s that seek mentors from within institutional
success and growth. The rest of the launch boundaries, boost teams often include
team is hand-picked collaboratively by the people from different institutions. Third,
mentee and primary mentor. Most launch teams these teams encourage and, in fact, require
consist of three to five people, each of whom openness to change, innovation, and
brings unique perspective and skill sets to the risk-taking in mentees. Boost teams
table. Such a team should also consist of one typically push mentees in ways that may be
mentor from the mentee's focus area so as to uncomfortable but are necessary for
nurture a broader perspective. Teams should further advancement. Members of the
also ensure a good gender and cultural mix boost team hone people and leadership
thus fostering an environment that the mentee skills. Finally, while mentees have only one
is comfortable with and membership that can launch or cruise team, some need more
relate to and share a mentee’s personal than one boost team if they pursue a
experience. continuing professional evolution.

The Cruise Team

The three teams described help to rethink
Once a mentee is launched, he or she needs a what it means to mentor individuals across
maintenance – or cruise – team, whose goal it is a continuum of growth. Whatever the stage
to ensure that progress continues. Sometimes, of your professional journey, you will likely
the launch team has the right mix of expertise
benefit from a team..
 members, but go slow and get to know them as

MASTERMIND individuals before issuing an official invitation.

Invite them out for coffee or lunch to see them
in different situations. Finally, host an informal

GROUP gathering of several potential members to see

what the social dynamics are like. If one person
dominates the conversation or creates a
A mastermind group is made up of like-minded contentious atmosphere, perhaps he’s not the
individuals who meet to brainstorm and share best fit.
ideas, concerns and challenges. The group
provides a safe environment where members
can offer each other unconditional support,
Set ground rules
honest feedback, inspiration, great ideas,
practical solutions and encouragement during Stating the group’s goals and values up front
hard times. Those in the group also be- come a will enable potential candidates to make an
great resource as members plan their individual informed decision about whether they’d like to
strategies to grow their businesses. participate. After all, you want the group to be a
commitment they’re making for the long term.
The benefits of a mastermind group can be Three key rules can be: confidentiality, no
amazing. Agents and advisors who participate referral fees if members send each other new
in these groups claim: business, and if you make a commitment to
another member, you keep it. Group members
● They are able to solve their business strive to be on the lookout for ideas and
challenges through brainstorming and opportunities for their colleagues. The key is to
hearing what others have done in similar provide clarity around the purposes you’d like
circumstances. the group to serve (emotional support, business
● The group provides them with ac- leads, sharing best practices, joint revenue
countability. They are more likely to achieve opportunities, etc.)
goals and stay on task because of the

●
scheduled meetings.
They are inspired by others' ideas.
Develop a structure
● Their confidence grows as their peers
Clearly define the periodicity of the meeting
champion them.
(weekly, monthly etc.) which does not become a
● They see a tremendous increase in business
burden on members’ time, but enough to keep
effectiveness and results.
up with developments in each other’s lives.
Besides that, define the structure of each
To form such groups and run them effectively
meeting. In current times, such groups usually
for long term, look at the following steps:
connect via Skype and members speak in the
same order mentioning something they need
Identify your ideal group and any help they can offer to others. But when
something important comes up, like a new job
makeup opportunity or a family upheaval, the group is
flexible enough to abandon the typical
Start by making a list of the people you’d most structure and spend the entire call supporting
like to have in the group. Depending on your the member in need by listening, offering
preferences, it can be a mix of people from advice, and sharing resources
different professions or folks in the same
industry. In the latter case, it’s important not to
invite direct competitors into the group, to
ensure members feel comfortable speaking Creating a longer-running mastermind group,
freely. The more diverse the group, better it is. whether you want it to last a few years or a
lifetime, is a testament to the value of depth
Choose members wisely over breadth. In a fast-moving world, having
people in your life who have watched you grow
and progress can be a powerful touchstone,
Don’t rush into offering a group membership to with lasting results.
someone you haven’t fully vetted. It’s fine to
target people you don’t know well as possible
 PERSONAL Your board members’ benefits
package
BOARD OF ​Why would anyone wish to serve on your
personal board? Look at it like this: Each of us
DIRECTORS will be on someone’s else’s board. There is a very
real sense of giving back. As for concrete
benefits, you represent a potential source of
talent to your board members. Board members
also can become resources for one another.
Today we live in a ​different world​. Middle- and Connecting with other mentors and expanding
senior-level managers are no longer the ones personal networks is helpful at all stages of a
with stable jobs. With changes in direction, career.
restructuring, downsizing, acquisitions, mergers
and, ​of course, recessions​, your mentor is just
as likely to move on or be laid off as you are.
Build a diverse board
What you need instead is a board of directors
Innovation happens when fields of knowledge
for your career. A personal board of directors is
intersect. Whether your personal board has
similar to a mentorship, but broader in its
three or twenty members, stocking your board
application. A personal board is a group of
with a wide range of disciplinary expertise
people who can help navigate your career and
allows you to explore new paths and new
education, offering a mix of experience, talent
passions. If you enjoy the policy aspects of your
and diversity that one individual can’t match. If job, you may find your career pivoting toward
you want to survive in a shifting job market policy work. You might go back and take
influenced by shifting career needs, it’s
policy-related education. With that new focus,
necessary to control your own professional
your board of directors may acquire a city
destiny.
councilman in addition to engineers.

You should consider at least one board member

Here are four considerations to begin: who can help you overcome self-doubt and
provide the encouragement needed to take
Know your goal bold new steps. This person needs to know you
are as a person and has seen you in day-to-day
interactions. That might be within your
​Board membership should shift and change
community, your personal life, or any field
over time, just like your career goals. If you’re at
outside your profession.
an early stage of your career with your sights
set on management, find someone who is at
that level. If you’re not sure where you ought to
go next, find someone who can help you figure
that out. And if you don’t want to keep moving
up, you at least need someone who ensures you Instead of relying on a single upper-level
stay current. manager, assemble a team of equipped
specialists for yourself as if you were creating a
Keep it formal board of directors — their combined efforts
could yield real results for you.
​A personal board of directors is more explicit
than traditional networking. Don’t be afraid to
seek out specific expertise, even if you’ve never
met potential board members in person. It
doesn’t matter whether they are on a different
continent or the other side of the country. The
only requirement is they have the skills and the
knowledge base you need and are willing to
share insights.