MENTORING WITHOUT A MENTOR....

Sharing from:

            HOW TO BE YOUR OWN MENTOR

            LILY CHEAH

EDITOR, LEADERONOMICS.COM

 mystarjob.com; Saturday 24 May 2014

Mentors are great to have.  They:

·         Give a different perspective on things

·         Share their experiences, both victories and failures

·         Aren’t afraid to correct and challenge

·         Encourage

·         Guide thought process

With seasons in life such as relocating to different cities or countries, and general busyness, it can be very difficult to maintain regular contact with our mentors.  In these situations, we can replicate some dynamics of the mentor-mentee relationship.  These steps are applicable even for those who don’t currently have a mentor.

1.       Keep a journal

Mentors are fantastic because they are able to see things that we may not and point these out.  Journaling is one way that we can examine ourselves from an ‘outside’ perspective.  It’s very interesting what you can deduce when you look back on past entries.

2.      Reflect regularly

Mentors will be able to identify what went well and what did not go so well.  Regular self-reflection is essential.  We should appeal to people around us for feedback to ensure we eliminate blind spots.

3.      Surround yourself with different people to get different ideas

Good mentors have an ability to ask the right questions so that we will consider things we haven’t thought about before.  They will also be able to encourage us to go beyond our zones of comfort.  Surround ourselves with peers who do not think like us so that we will to hear different ideas and see things from different perspectives.

Of course the ideal would be for all of us to find a perfect mentor.