What Does A Mentor Actually Do?

As you set out on your mentoring journey, one of the first things you’ll want to establish is Mentor/Mentee expectations. By taking the time to talk through your intentions early on, you can avoid the potential for confusion/disagreement down the line.

Today, we’d like to explore the different expectations you’ll want to set over the course of your first few meetings and how they can shape the time you spend working together.

Roles and Responsibilities

First meetings can be hard. In some ways a first meeting can be like a first date. You’ve got a thousand questions you’d like to ask but you’re also strangely tongue-tied. You’re looking for a way in – a place to get things started – and the best way you can do that is by talking through your Mentor/Mentee expectations.

Start with your roles. Talk about how you see yourselves working together, what the Mentee would like to achieve, and how mentoring can help them to get there. This is also a good place to talk about how the two of you like to approach problems, and discuss what will and won’t be practical.

From here you can gently move towards laying down some concrete expectations. How often do you plan to meet? What will meetings look like? Will there be a weekly agenda?

Furthermore, you should establish some long-term deadlines. Does the Mentee expect to find their dream job role within a year? Does the Mentor consider this reasonable?

It may take some time to nail down exactly how you’d like to progress but that’s not a problem. The more work you put in up front towards laying the right expectations on both sides, the easier it will be to meet them.

A Mentor’s Purpose

Why have a Mentor?

It’s a simple enough question but a vital one nonetheless. Individual Mentees will often have their own reasons for seeking out a Mentor. Perhaps they feel they’re struggling with their application process, or else they’re looking to move into an entirely new job role and want some guidance for where to start.

Here at Career Navig8r we see a Mentor as a person with experience of a job role who can share that experience with their Mentee. In this case it’s up to the Mentee to communicate why they’re looking for someone with that experience.

That being said, this is also a great question to ask as a Mentor. After all, your Mentee’s questions will always be easier to answer in the wider context of their long-term goals. Whenever in doubt, it never hurts to ask why.

The Practical Side of Mentoring

On the day to day, a Mentor’s job is to answer questions and provide solutions. Working remotely, Mentees can arrange meetings to talk through issues they’re currently having as well as any plans they might have going forwards.

Drawing on their knowledge of the role they’ve worked in, a Mentor can guide their Mentee towards the best solutions whilst also helping them to master the correct mindset. Mentors can help with broad problems such as how to tailor a CV to their specific job role and which qualifications/career paths will get the Mentee where they want to be, but they can also help with the specifics of day-to-day work in that career role.

Some Mentees even choose to keep their Mentors once they’ve acquired the job role they’re looking for because the Mentor’s experience will help them to excel far faster than they might have on their own.

And all of this done from home, working remotely in your own time. All you need to be a Mentor is a computer with an internet connection and a webcam, experience of a job role, and the willingness to share your expertise with those who need it.

Building Confidence and Nurturing Growth

We’ve talked a lot about what a Mentor does but now’s the time to talk about what a Mentor is.

Put simply, a Mentor is a teacher and a helper – someone whose main goal is to push their Mentee forwards and help them to build a better future for themselves. In many ways a Mentor is a role model, someone the Mentee can relate to and emulate. In doing so, they’ll build their confidence and that confidence will be the key to progress.

Sign up to be a Mentor at CareerNavig8r.com today and become the role model you always wished you had!