The benefits of being a mentor to someone at your company are not often discussed, but a genuine mentor-mentee relationship is valuable to both parties. If you’re considering becoming a mentor in your industry, here’s what you should know.
Reasons to Become a Mentor
Becoming a mentor doesn’t just benefit the employee you’re mentoring. There’s plenty in it for you, too. A mentor-mentee relationship requires an investment of time and energy, but it can be well worth it once you find a mentee that you genuinely respect.
Here are 5 ways that becoming a mentor can benefit your career as well as your mentee’s.
- Grow your leadership skills. One-on-one mentoring can help you cultivate your leadership skills in a way you don’t always experience with department-wide management. In addition, you’ll need to develop your patience, problem-solving, and emotional intelligence—all excellent skills for any leader.
- Gain a new perspective. Typically, the employee you mentor will be younger or more recent to the workforce than you. But, even if you know everything there is to know about your business, a fresh perspective can help change stale routines and allow you to see things in a new light.
- Play an active role in shaping your workforce. If your mentorship is successful, your mentee will eventually be promoted to a leadership role in your company. A good leader can influence company culture and shape the rest of the workforce. It all starts with what you teach them.
- Strengthen your knowledge. Through your mentorship, you’ll have the opportunity to impart the wisdom you’ve learned throughout your time at the company. In addition, teaching an understudy will allow you to pay it forward.
- Make a difference. It feels good to help someone else, and becoming a mentor gives you a chance to make a real difference in the life of a young professional. With any luck, the two of you will form a career-long bond that’s mutually fulfilling.
How to Choose a Mentee
The key to getting the most out of your mentorship experience is choosing the right person to mentor. When it’s time to find a mentee, you want to select an employee with the potential to grow with just a little help. Your mentee should be an employee who is passionate about their career and already has the drive to succeed. Skills can be taught, but attitude can’t.
The most important trait to look for when you find a mentee is a genuine ability to listen. An employee can have all the potential in the world, but if you can’t coach them, neither of you will get anything out of the relationship. Being a mentor can sometimes involve delivering hard lessons, and a mentee needs to take these seriously without taking them personally.
If you’re undecided about why you should become a mentor, a business coach can help. Click on my get started form for a complimentary meeting to discuss how to find a mentee. You can also click here to sign up for my free weekly business articles on leadership, best practices, and more.
Coach Dave
- Avoiding Unconscious Bias in Performance Reviews - March 30, 2023
- Why is Influencer Marketing Important for Small Businesses - March 23, 2023
- Insightful Time Management Quotes - March 16, 2023
