MENTOR OTHERS
WHY IT MATTERS
Leaders can only ever be as good as the people that surround them. If the people surrounding a leader don’t have the ability to consistently achieve results, then results will always be just out of reach, despite any individual heroics a leader may provide. Leaders who are able to mentor others can take people from their current level of capability and performance to where they need to be, ensuring both the short and long-term success of the individual and the organization. To make the organization better, they focus on making individual people better. Leaders that fail to mentor other people put their own success at risk by failing to invest in helping them gain the capability and know-how to get their job done right.
WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE
Leaders that mentor others feel a personal responsibility to grow their people. They become a catalyst for helping others learn and reach their full potential. They have a tangible appreciation for those who helped them achieve success and want to do the same for others. They become champions for those they mentor. They find just as much satisfaction in seeing those they mentor succeed as they do in their own success. Leaders know that as a mentor they are leaving behind a legacy that will continue to pay dividends for the organization and the people they serve long after they are gone.
Leaders that mentor others play the role of expert listener to those they assist. They help people feel understood and accepted. They learn to listen not just to what people say, but to what they don’t say. They are expert at perceiving how others are feeling, what they are thinking, and why. They make time for those they mentor to stop by unannounced, talk openly, ask questions, vent frustrations, share ideas, practice tasks, and socialize. They never make others feel they are too busy to talk.
Leaders that mentor others develop others. They share their personal experiences and lessons learned. They help people identify their strengths, interests, weaknesses, and goals. They invest in identifying opportunities to propel people’s growth and career development. They pave the way for forming key developmental relationships, make possible real on-the-job development experiences, and sponsor those they mentor for developmental programs and initiatives. They look for every opportunity to allow those they mentor to showcase their talents.
Leaders that mentor others help people test their thoughts and ideas. They role-play real life scenarios. They assist people in thinking through the potential consequences of their decisions and actions. Instead of giving people all the answers, they help them come to their own conclusions through good questions.
Leaders that are mentors genuinely care about people. Because they care, they are honest in their assessments, feedback, and coaching. They don’t back down from saying what needs to be said if it will help someone grow and get better. They are direct in their feedback, and take it upon themselves to help people recognize reality, no matter how hard it might be to hear. They speak the truth in a way that inspires people and makes them feel cared for instead of feeling attacked. They are equally quick to encourage, share what people do well, and praise them for their efforts.
BELIEFS
BEST PRACTICES
SELF-REFLECTION
WORDS OF CAUTION
Leaders can only ever be as good as the people that surround them. If the people surrounding a leader don’t have the ability to consistently achieve results, then results will always be just out of reach, despite any individual heroics a leader may provide. Leaders who are able to mentor others can take people from their current level of capability and performance to where they need to be, ensuring both the short and long-term success of the individual and the organization. To make the organization better, they focus on making individual people better. Leaders that fail to mentor other people put their own success at risk by failing to invest in helping them gain the capability and know-how to get their job done right.
WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE
Leaders that mentor others feel a personal responsibility to grow their people. They become a catalyst for helping others learn and reach their full potential. They have a tangible appreciation for those who helped them achieve success and want to do the same for others. They become champions for those they mentor. They find just as much satisfaction in seeing those they mentor succeed as they do in their own success. Leaders know that as a mentor they are leaving behind a legacy that will continue to pay dividends for the organization and the people they serve long after they are gone.
Leaders that mentor others play the role of expert listener to those they assist. They help people feel understood and accepted. They learn to listen not just to what people say, but to what they don’t say. They are expert at perceiving how others are feeling, what they are thinking, and why. They make time for those they mentor to stop by unannounced, talk openly, ask questions, vent frustrations, share ideas, practice tasks, and socialize. They never make others feel they are too busy to talk.
Leaders that mentor others develop others. They share their personal experiences and lessons learned. They help people identify their strengths, interests, weaknesses, and goals. They invest in identifying opportunities to propel people’s growth and career development. They pave the way for forming key developmental relationships, make possible real on-the-job development experiences, and sponsor those they mentor for developmental programs and initiatives. They look for every opportunity to allow those they mentor to showcase their talents.
Leaders that mentor others help people test their thoughts and ideas. They role-play real life scenarios. They assist people in thinking through the potential consequences of their decisions and actions. Instead of giving people all the answers, they help them come to their own conclusions through good questions.
Leaders that are mentors genuinely care about people. Because they care, they are honest in their assessments, feedback, and coaching. They don’t back down from saying what needs to be said if it will help someone grow and get better. They are direct in their feedback, and take it upon themselves to help people recognize reality, no matter how hard it might be to hear. They speak the truth in a way that inspires people and makes them feel cared for instead of feeling attacked. They are equally quick to encourage, share what people do well, and praise them for their efforts.
BELIEFS
- Everyone who has walked the road to success did so because someone else believed in and helped them.
- Everyone, at some point, needs someone else to hold his or her hand and show the way.
- Mentoring is not an optional task or assignment for a leader. Mentoring is one of their crucial roles.
- Helping to make other people better, in large part, is the very essence of true leadership.
- Every leader should feel a personal responsibility to develop the next generation of leaders.
- Leaders who refuse to take the time to mentor and grow other people are acting selfish.
- Leaders who don’t mentor others will never get the results they could have if they had chosen to invest time in others.
- Leaders are known for what they leave behind. Those that choose to leave behind better people will be remembered forever.
BEST PRACTICES
- Share your experiences with others.
- Pass on to others the lessons you have learned.
- Help others grow new skills and talents.
- Help people cultivate mentor relationships.
- Be completely honest in giving feedback.
- Help people recognize strengths & weaknesses.
- Paint a realistic picture of where people are.
- Help people create a plan for their growth.
- Don’t take credit for other people’s success.
- Tell people the skills they need to gain.
- Push people’s thinking and vision.
- Want others to be better than you are.
- Practice scenarios and real-life job situations.
- Take time of out your day to help others.
- Share personal successes and failures.
- Help people avoid the mistakes you made.
- Grow the next generation of leaders.
- Be thrilled to see others grow and succeed.
- Advise people on the best decisions to make.
- Help people reflect on their experiences.
- Ask questions to draw out people’s thoughts.
- Do more listening than talking.
SELF-REFLECTION
- Do I feel responsible to build and grow people, or do I think my only responsibility is to deliver work-related results?
- Do I find the same amount of satisfaction in seeing others succeed as I do in my own success, or do I envy other’ success?
- Do I give people an open door to speak with me when they need, or do I give the impression I don’t want to be bothered?
- Do I look for opportunities to grow those I mentor, or do I rarely get around to thinking about their development needs?
- Do I openly share the lessons learned from my own life’s experiences, or do I hold back what I have learned from others?
- Do I care enough about people to give them hard feedback, or do I fall short of telling people the truth?
- Do I feel it is critical to actively mentor people for the future, or do I see mentoring as a lower-level leadership activity?
- Do I act as a mentor for others, or do I miss the chance to make a lasting difference in someone’s life?
WORDS OF CAUTION
- Don’t invest in mentoring someone who doesn’t want to be mentored. Spend your time with those who want the help.
- Don’t mentor people for too long. At the right time, allow people to move forward and blaze their own path of success.
- Don’t take it upon yourself to do for others what they should be doing for themselves in terms of their growth and development.
- It’s okay to let my employee’s fail, rather than stepping in to help them.
- The best way to find the next great leader is to find someone just like me.
- Even when I’ve made a big mistake, I have the courage to look the person in the eye and say I’m sorry.
- At the end of the day, I like it when I can get others to see things my way.
- The most important thing I can do is develop my people.