The Most Effective Mentoring Skills

Not all managers, even those in senior positions, have not learned how to be an effective mentor, a skill that can aid in various workplace settings. Mentoring is not a simple as answering questions and giving advice. Mentoring, at its most advance stages, requires a skill set that not all people can accomplish. You will want to produce the most effective results within the workplace.

A mentor and mentee relationship should involve two-way communication that is open all the time. This will provide a supportive climate for discussion on various topics that may or may not be related to workplace issues. A mentor and mentee relationship will include discussions about personal experiences and issues in an effort to create a trusting relationship. Once this has been developed, you will be able to discuss tough issues with the mentee.

Respect must be a vital ingredient in a mentor-mentee relationship, which will lead to the mentee realizing that the mentor has something of value to offer during the mentoring process. Should a mentee come across as unfocused, the mentor will need to be as patient as possible. A mentor can assist a mentee with his or her focus by presenting and discussing organization and focus methods.

Good listening is also another important quality in the mentor-mentee relationship. The majority of mentors will tend to talk more rather than listen to their mentee. This means that the mentor will need to develop better listening skills when possible. The best way to get a mentee to open up as much as possible is to ask him or her open-ended questions. These questions require an answer longer than ‘yes’ or ‘no.’ Possible questions include what led you to major in human resources or what are your goals for the next five years? In an effort to demonstrate interest in the conversation, be sure you ask the mentee follow-up questions about the original topic.

Mentors should also provide their mentee with as much constructive feedback and advice as possible. A mentor should match the openness of his or her mentee. A mentee who is open to a closed mentor will see the relationship fade quickly. The negative feedback from a mentor should not come until the relationship is strong enough for the mentee to handle it. A mentor-mentee relationship needs a strong balance of praise and constructive feedback allowing the mentee to improve his or her life.

A mentor who is a veteran in the profession will be able to focus on behavior of the mentee that occurs in the department or the company as a whole. The mentee should set goals at the beginning of the relationship, which can lead to feedback from and suggestions from the mentor.

A mentor needs to monitor the progress of the mentee to make sure he or she is meeting the goals set in the relationship by specific target dates. Problem solving along with the mentee is a very important part of the relationship as well.