The First Meetings with Your Mentor
Making Every Meeting Count                                            

 

By: Vonya Alleyne 
October 2016, ENDEAVOR  News Magazine

 

Vonya AlleyneMentorship is a great way to enhance your skills and expertise, ultimately readying you for that next career move. I strongly believe mentorship is pivotal to success for anyone, at any level. You can simply want to learn new skills or discover ways to improve your relationships with coworkers and colleagues. Additionally, mentors can help with personal growth. After all, career-minded individuals have to learn how to balance work and home life effectively in order to be successful.

Corporate mentorship programs have a great track record and can be valuable to accelerating employee development and increase retention for any company. At Cox Communications, we have access to internal programs like our formal Cox Communications Mentorship Program and informal opportunities including Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) – affinity groups or employee networks -- that bring employees with like needs and interests together. The ERGs hold Coffee Talks, Fireside Chats, and panel discussions focused on topics such as “building your brand” or other skills germane to the affinity group.  Business groups like the Hampton Roads Chamber of Commerce also have great programs based on your career level and interests.

Every mentorship relationship is different. If you’re just getting started, consider starting with a six month to one-year timeframe to work with your mentor, where you meet physically and/or virtually, at least six times per year.  This timeframe allows ample time to establish the building blocks for a good relationship, allowing time to build rapport and grow your relationship. The format, content and order of these sessions (particularly meetings 2 – 5) can vary, but once you’ve identified your mentor and received their buy-in to go through this journey with you, you should keep these tips in mind for successful meetings and relationship building.

Meeting #1: Introductions:  In your first meeting with your mentor, you should both share your career and educational backgrounds. Some questions you can ask include the following: What steps have you taken to get you to this point in your career? What are your goals for this mentoring experience?

You should also decide on the best way to communicate. Do you want to meet via phone, email, in person? Do you want the process to be formal or more casual? Setting the ground rules upfront will ensure you are both on the same page and expectations are met.

Meeting #2: Career Planning:  Your second meeting should focus on your career goals and the plans you want to take to get you to the next level in your career. Remember, this is a two-way street. Mentoring involves both the mentor and the mentee. You should look at your 2-5-10 year career plan. Also discuss the skills and ongoing professional training you will need to achieve these goals.

Meeting #3: Work/Life Balance:  Work/life balance is different for everyone and striking the right balance can often be a struggle for many business professionals. Society is wired for instant communication and in trying to stay connected at work it often spills over into your personal life. You should be realistic in the amount of time you spend at work beyond your standard work week. Consider making a list of the questions you have about managing the right balance between work and family. Share these thoughts with your mentor to see if your expectations are realistic.  This will assist in laying a solid path for that right mix of the two.

Meeting #4: Leadership:  Leadership is developed over time. Ask your mentor what he or she has done to develop his or her leadership skills. Brainstorm together a list of ways you can build your leadership skills such as reading books, attending conferences and webinars, subscribing to leadership magazines, etc.  It’s a good idea to make a list of the traits that you feel make a good leader and see how they compare to what your mentor looks for in a great leader. Take time to really reflect on yourself and listen very carefully to your mentor. Listening is essential to learning.

Meeting #5: Professional Challenges:  You should share professional experiences you’ve had at work where you were successful and not-so successful in meeting a leadership challenge.  We all learn from our mistakes. By breaking down the components of a leadership decision, you can often identify where there was an issue. Use your mentor’s experience to provide insight into common leadership issues. Communicate any upcoming leadership opportunities you have on the horizon. Discuss other topics that may be concerning you.

Meeting #6: Evaluation:  In your last meeting, evaluate the success of your relationship. Did you get what you wanted out of the relationship? Did the mentor gain insights? Do you want to continue this relationship? Just like you do an end of the year performance review or evaluation, do the same with your mentor relationship. Consider creating a list of suggestions. It’s okay to have more than one mentor depending on where you are in your career.

From one professional to another, I challenge you to consider being a mentor and/or seek a mentor to help you be successful in your personal and professional pursuits. Remember keep growing and striving for excellence in all aspects of your life!

 

This article was first published in the July 2016 ENDEAVOR News Magazine.  For more stories please see:  ENDEAVOR

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