Maximize Your Mentor Relationship

This is the final strategy in the three part series on maximizing your relationship with your mentor.

Let’s review before we conclude this series on maximizing your relationship with your mentor.  The first two strategies we discussed were:

Strategy 1: Find the right mentoring relationship by asking the right question.

Strategy 2: Don’t look for a mentor that only gives you positive feedback.

The final strategy in this series is:

Expect the relationship to require a lot of time and energy.  It
should.  Be prepared before your meetings.  If you are not ready to devote time and energy to being an active protégé’ then wait before you launch a mentoring relationship.  

A mentoring relationship should both challenge and inspire you.  If you have the right mentor that knows how to give you honest feedback to propel you forward and expand your core capacity.  Then friend, you have a good mentoring relationship.
Until next time,
Stephanie

3 Strategies to Maximize Your Mentor Relationship

This is part two of a three part series on maximizing your
relationship with your mentor.

Strategy 2
Don’t look for a mentor that only gives you positive feedback. If
you have a mentor and you are only receiving positive feedback, you
are missing out on growth opportunities.  When you think about the
coach/athlete relationship the job of the coach is to help the
player see weak areas in their ‘game’.  On the other hand, don’t
buy into the mindset ‘constructive criticism’.  Did you know that
‘criticism’ also means disapproval and condemnation?  What is
constructive about disapproval and condemnation?  Instead you want
a mentor relationship to be realistic, truthful and they should
‘call you on it’ when you make up excuses or don’t deliver on
between meeting actions. Your responsibility is to keep in mind
that you didn’t ask for a mentor so that they could be ‘really
nice’ to you.     

Until next time,
Stephanie

3 Strategies to Maximize Your Mentor Relationship

This is part one of a three part series on maximizing your
relationship with your mentor. You can also use these strategies to
help you find a mentor.

Strategy 1

Find the right mentoring relationship by asking the right question.

Often potential mentors overestimate the amount of time the
relationship will require and sometimes potential mentors don’t
believe they are qualified. Asking a potential mentor, “will you
be my mentor”, could lead a mentor to think how busy they already
are and how they can’t take on one more thing. Instead ask people
you would like to be your mentors if they have time to offer their
opinions on some of your ideas. Be clear on how their strength can
help move you to the next level of professional development.

Until next time,
Stephanie

If you ask a leader what has been beneficial  and memorable in their leadership journey,  you will find somewhere along the way — At least one  mentor.    A recent article by Dr. Gary Collins commented on what makes a good mentor. 

A good mentor:

• Is a person who is “absolutely credible” and has a high level of integrity.
• Listens and responds in ways that show that the hearer has been understood.
• Encourages and gives the protégé confidence that he or she can move forward despite inner doubts and fears.
• Gives honest feedback but without being demeaning
• Interacts in ways that are respectful and that encourages the protégé to do better and to take risks.
• Shares ideas, presents opportunities and gives challenges that the person being mentored may not have seen or recognized as possibilities.
• Is not threatened by the protégé’s capabilities and opportunities to succeed and get ahead. Instead, good mentors cheer others on.
• Is not too proud to learn from the protégé’s questions and experiences. The best mentoring is two way in which people with different experiences and places in life learn from one another.

To your success,   Stephanie 

“Nice” teams get mediocre results. Teams that know how to ’stir up’ healthy conflict get ‘great’ results. Controversial statement but let me clarify. “Nice” team members don’t show weakness because” you never let them see you sweat” or be wrong. Likewise “nice” teams don’t disagree openly.  Here is an illustration: One of the “nice” team members suggests a low sales call goal. The suggestion is: only make two new sales calls a week. The team agrees. Each member of the five-member team makes the goal and 10 new sales calls are made for the team.

Goal accomplished.  But was it the goal you wanted?

Your data shows the average number of calls it takes to get a close ratio of two clients per associate is a minimum of ten calls per associate. The person that had the data didn’t bring it up because they didn’t want conflict. The person that suggested the goal didn’t want to appear weak so he proposed an achievable goal.  

 Action: Promote intelligent conflict by having the requirement that team members must communicate team decisions to their staff within2 hours of the meeting. This request will often drive team members to bring up any concerns that have not been clarified.

In the early stages of team development, you may want to develop a creative way to signal when the “nice” member shows up. Did you take the initiative and stir things up?  

 To your success, Stephanie  

“Nice” teams get mediocre results. Teams that know how to ’stir up’ healthy conflict get ‘great’ results. Controversial statement but let me clarify. “Nice” team members don’t show weakness because” you never let them see you sweat” or be wrong. Likewise “nice” teams don’t disagree openly.  Here is an illustration: One of the “nice” team members suggests a low sales call goal. The suggestion is: only make two new sales calls a week. The team agrees. Each member of the five-member team makes the goal and 10 new sales calls are made for the team.

Goal accomplished.  But was it the goal you wanted?

Your data shows the average number of calls it takes to get a close ratio of two clients per associate is a minimum of ten calls per associate. The person that had the data didn’t bring it up because they didn’t want conflict. The person that suggested the goal didn’t want to appear weak so he proposed an achievable goal.  

 Action: Promote intelligent conflict by having the requirement that team members must communicate team decisions to their staff within2 hours of the meeting. This request will often drive team members to bring up any concerns that have not been clarified.

In the early stages of team development, you may want to develop a creative way to signal when the “nice” member shows up. Did you take the initiative and stir things up?  

 To your success, Stephanie