This week, I was flattered to be asked to serve as a mentor. Honestly, I don’t know if my new protégé was more excited or if I was. Ready to share, I sat down and shared helpful suggestions while escaping the summer heat and sipping on lemonade.
My new protégé wanted to know so many things all at once: How did I start to write a book? Where did I start with setting up a business? Who helped me? What mistakes did I make and overcome? What did I do to chart a strategic plan?
Serving as a mentor is a phenomenal role. A mentor is someone who has more life experience than you who wants to share and be a resource. Throughout my personal life and professional career, I’ve had numerous mentors who guided me in my journey.
But, the mentor and protégé should be clear about expectations and parameters. It should be stated up front about the purpose of the support is, timeframe, and availability. That way it can be a long-term and mutually beneficial learning experience.
Most people don’t readily consider how easy it is to become a mentor. First, you can be a role model to inspire masses or one person at a time. Or, you might also be a teacher, someone who takes time to offer instruction, alternatives, and guidance. Finally, you might serve as an advisor where and a protégé runs ideas by you for input. This is an important aspect of being a good leader that I discuss in my book Leadership Building Blocks: An Insider’s Guide to Success.
Regardless, check out some concrete ways protégés seeking mentors can find viable mentors from this article featured in Inc. Magazine. http://www.inc.com/guides/how-to-find-a-business-mentor.html
-Dawn McCoy, author of Leadership Building Blocks: An Insider’s Guide to Success
