Imagine being connected with someone who has achieved the same goals you’re pursuing and has the experience and knowledge you wish you had to generate similar or better results. Wouldn’t that make the journey towards greatness easier? That’s precisely what mentorship does. It connects you to an individual that can share advice, offer guidance, and prepare you for your career or life — ensuring continued growth and development. In this post, we will help you understand mentoring and share the benefits of having a mentor by your side, especially with the GBRI’s Leaning Forward Mentorship Program. Let’s get started!
What is a mentor?
It’s crucial to identify who a mentor really is. From the introduction above, you might think that a person giving advice or sharing perspective is a mentor. Well, wouldn’t that make all of us a mentor? As per the Business Dictionary, a mentor in an organizational setting is a –
“Senior or more experienced person who is assigned to function as an advisor, counselor, or guide to a junior or trainee. The mentor has the responsibility of offering help and feedback to the person under his or her supervision.”
Remember, you have a career to build; you wouldn’t want to take advice from anyone that has walked the walk. Instead, you should look for professional mentors that understand your circumstances and share expertise that positively influences your personal and professional growth.Â
What are the benefits of mentorship?
There are several powerful benefits of being mentored by someone more experienced than you. After all, you can only learn so much from your experience. Bringing in a mentor can reap long-term rewards in your professional journey. Let’s discuss the seven advantages of mentorship, shall we?
1. Enables positive professional growth
Mentors know how to support an individual’s personal and professional development. They guide and help focus your efforts on things that actually matter in a professional journey. They help set goals and give feedback to keep you on the right path. Companies that have employee mentoring programs often have a high-quality and productive workforce.
2. Source of knowledge and wisdom
The insights and information a mentor shares are invaluable. They are specific and help unlock your potential and open doors that once looked impenetrable. Mentors offer instructions to perform certain tasks and in the process, help develop your skills. Individuals that have just started their career or are confused about how to approach a professional career benefit the most from mentorship.
3. Help you with proper goal setting
A journey becomes manageable when you set the right goals and objectives. However, effective goal-setting is a skill one can take a long time to master. Mentors help mentees create SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-based) goals to drive the latter’s effort in the right direction. They break down the process into smaller objectives and help mentees set their priorities right.Â
4. Brings accountability to the equation
Mentors are good at tracking an individual’s progress. They keep reminding the mentees about their goals and objectives and hold them accountable for their progress. Mentors push their mentees to do more and achieve more. In other words, accountability serves as a source of motivation for the mentees — making them put effort into not letting the mentor down.
5. Mentors help make connections
Do you have a professional network you can rely on? Mentors help you build one. Most mentors have more industry experience and higher-level careers They are well-connected with other professionals that can help the mentees with potential learning opportunities. Such opportunities help mentees create a professional network of their own.
6. Mentors listen and advise accordingly
People that are just starting their careers or are confused about career choices often need someone to listen to them. Mentors serve their need to be heard and understood with unbiased advice and opinion about things that concern them the most. They take time to understand you better and only then do they provide a solution to your issues. In the process, you build a trusting relationship with the mentor.
7. Opportunity to gain constructive feedback
Mentors are professionals and they just know how to use feedback as a constructive tool. They provide honest feedback in a way that pushes the mentees more towards their set goals. Mentors identify your weaknesses by playing an objective role and suggest ways to improve. Giving constructive feedback is a skill that is mastered only by a few.
Takeaway!
Mentorship can be highly insightful and beneficial, especially at an individual level as it can result in transformational learning and experience. Most importantly, you get to build a growth-oriented relationship with the mentor and develop a long-term student mindset. We highly recommend you take the first step towards progressive mentorship with the GBRI’s Leaning Forward Mentorship Program today. It will help you identify the essential elements to establishing a career foundation and introduce you to professional ethics and values like integrity, teamwork, visibility, initiative, and work-life balance. Did you find this post helpful? Don’t forget to check out other informative posts on the blog!
