WORN LEATHER WARRIORS (Walking the Mentor’s Path)
- By Joyce Hansen

At the age of 19, I was fortunate enough to meet a mentor who encouraged me to plunge into new responsibilities with both feet.  I can still remember when he was leaving for a trip to Edmonton and told me that I would need to finish negotiating an Offer to Lease in his absence.  When I replied that I had never done that before, he said “I guess you will learn”.

From that experience, I usually learned by following the footsteps of others by attempting to walk in their shoes.  I certainly have worn out a lot of shoes along the way, but becoming “street savvy” has been a key to overcoming the hesitancy I formerly felt when walking into new territory.  I am constantly seeking out new mentors to help me with my current challenges and have a great thirst for their knowledge and experiences.

Writing out a list of traits and experience criteria of mentors that you would like to meet is helpful to gain clarity about the type of people you would like to attract to you.  Look for these types of people wherever you go.  Ask them if they are interested in establishing a mentor/mentee relationship.  They probably will lead you to someone else if it isn’t the right timing or situation for them.  Don’t be afraid to ask others for help.  It is truly a sign of strength not weakness to seek the advice and assistance of others.

Because of my experiences and my passion for helping others, I have placed myself in a mentor’s role many times along my path.  I urge everyone to willingly share their knowledge and to genuinely be happy for others when they succeed.

It makes my day when I get an e-mail from someone sharing that they went outside their comfort level to try something new that I had suggested and they were successful.  Imagine what a different place the world would be if we all took time out to think of ways to be of help to others in their professional or business life or both.

If you have an urge within you to play a role in helping someone else succeed, consider these benefits.

1. You’ll learn.  By serving as a mentor, you will learn from your mentees about yourself in ways you never imagined.
   
   
2. By being a mentor it is your chance to pay back and show gratitude for the people that have enlightened you in the past.
   
   
3. You will feel satisfied, proud amongst other energizing emotions.  When you have a positive effect on your mentees, expect several positive feelings of pride, satisfaction, happiness, contentment, and excitement along with the enjoyable physiological reactions that go along with helping others succeed.
   
   
4. You’ll leave the world a better place.  Taking the time to reach out to others, sharing your life’s wisdom and showing your respect for them is probably the least expensive and most powerful way to change the world, one life at a time.
   
   
5. It helps you to clarify your own vision.  You need to do this before you can help your mentees with theirs.
   
   
6. Positive reinforcement delivered through words – praise – is a vital mentoring skill.  When you use it effectively, you will also receive positive reinforcement from others in ways that you never expected. 
   
   
7. Teaching mentees how to eventually judge their own performance so they can correctly evaluate their ability in certain areas serves as a reminder to you to genuinely assess your own performance on a consistent basis by being honest with yourself as to your true performance level.  False feedback will not help your mentee or yourself grow.
   
   
8. By establishing difficult, challenging tasks for mentees, you can set larger goals for yourself and work alongside the mentee as well as leading the way, delving into new waters yourself to once again leave more track marks by walking in new footsteps.  This will encourage the mentee to keep forging ahead because they see you coping with challenges and not giving up at the first roadblock.

Some mentees will come to you with specific objectives and want to immediately work on these objectives.  They won’t want to explore personal visions and long range plans for their lives.  After you have built their trust and have had a chance to get to know them better and to understand their strengths, you can invite them to step back and explore the future and their personal visions.

As a mentor, you have that unique opportunity to help mentees with their “big picture”.  In turn, you may discover creative ideas to incorporate into your own “big picture”.  Some of my best ideas have come after I have had a brainstorming session with a client.

When considering establishing a mentor/mentee relationship, reflect on these key components to manifest a successful experience:

1. Write out a Purpose Statement
2. Decide Communication Vehicles
3. Establish Trust Boundaries
4. Map out a Stepping Stone Process
5. Establish Progress Milestones
6. Determine Method of Feedback
7. Set Achievement Timelines
8. Set Date for Celebration Ceremony

Remember, that whatever you have done or dreamed of doing, others can benefit from your experiences.  Dreams emit magic and power. Be brave, walk your talk, follow in others footsteps but don’t be afraid to leave your own imprints. Become a seasoned warrior and lead the way – one footstep at a time.

Copyright Class Act Connections.  All rights reserved.  Joyce Hansen, President, is a public relations and business development specialist who helps her clients manifest their success.  She can be reached at joyceh@classactconnections.com or 905-278-0952.