Kategori: Mentoring

Articles about mentoring.

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Leadership When It Matters Most: Should Mentoring Be a Part of the Equation? – Part 2

As written in the last post leadership is a critical component of any organization’s success, and it is never more apparent than in times of crisis or when important decisions need to be made. 

Examples of Effective Leadership and Mentoring

Several real-world examples illustrate the positive impact of mentoring in leadership during critical moments:

  1. Nelson Mandela: Mandela’s leadership during South Africa’s transition from apartheid to democracy is often lauded. He leaned on the wisdom of his mentors, including Oliver Tambo and Walter Sisulu, who helped shape his leadership style and approach to reconciliation.
  2. Steve Jobs: While leading Apple through periods of innovation and turbulence, Jobs provided mentorship to key executives like Tim Cook, shaping the future of the company even in his absence.
  3. Winston Churchill: Churchill’s mentorship of key figures in his wartime government, such as Anthony Eden, played a pivotal role in the United Kingdom’s success during World War II.

In times of crisis and when important decisions loom, effective leadership is crucial for an organization’s survival and success. However, leadership is not a solitary endeavor; it is enriched by the inclusion of mentoring. Mentoring can provide invaluable support, knowledge transfer, and skill development for leaders when they need it most.

Leaders who prioritize mentoring during critical moments not only benefit themselves but also contribute to the growth and development of future leaders. As the saying goes, «Leadership is not about being in charge. It is about taking care of those in your charge.» By incorporating mentoring into their leadership practices, leaders can better fulfill this essential role, ensuring that they and their teams successfully navigate the challenges that come their way.

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Leadership When It Matters Most: Should Mentoring Be a Part of the Equation? – Part 1

Leadership is a critical component of any organization’s success, and it is never more apparent than in times of crisis or when important decisions need to be made. Whether it’s navigating a global pandemic, facing financial hardships, or dealing with a major industry disruption, effective leadership can make all the difference. But what role does mentoring play in leadership when it matters most? Should leaders prioritize mentorship during challenging times? This article explores the intersection of leadership and mentoring and highlights the benefits of incorporating mentoring into leadership practices during crucial moments.

The Importance of Leadership During Critical Times

Leadership is not just about guiding a team during smooth sailing; it’s about steering the ship through turbulent waters. When an organization faces a crisis or is confronted with a significant decision, strong and visionary leadership becomes paramount. Effective leaders must inspire confidence, provide direction, and offer solutions when the going gets tough. They must also maintain morale, communicate transparently, and adapt swiftly to changing circumstances.

Leadership, however, is not solely about the person in charge but extends to the team as a whole. Leaders are tasked with developing the skills and capabilities of their team members to ensure the organization can overcome challenges collectively.

The Role of Mentoring in Leadership

Mentoring is a practice that involves an experienced individual (the mentor) guiding and supporting a less-experienced person (the mentee) in their personal or professional development. While mentoring is often associated with career growth and skill-building, it also plays a crucial role in leadership development, particularly during times of crisis or important decision-making.

Here are some reasons why mentoring should be a part of leadership when it matters most:

  1. Knowledge Transfer: Mentoring allows experienced leaders to share their wisdom, knowledge, and expertise with emerging leaders. During critical moments, this knowledge transfer can be invaluable in making informed decisions and navigating complex situations.
  2. Emotional Support: Leadership during challenging times can be emotionally taxing. Mentoring provides a safe space for leaders to discuss their concerns, fears, and uncertainties with a trusted mentor, which can help alleviate stress and improve decision-making.
  3. Skill Development: Effective leaders possess a wide range of skills, including communication, adaptability, and problem-solving. Mentoring provides an opportunity for mentees to develop these skills under the guidance of experienced leaders.
  4. Accountability: Mentoring relationships often involve setting goals and tracking progress. This accountability can be particularly beneficial during high-stress periods, ensuring that leaders stay focused on their objectives.
  5. Perspective and Feedback: Mentors can offer valuable outside perspectives and honest feedback, helping leaders make more informed decisions and avoid potential pitfalls.

Read my next blogpost where I write more about this theme.

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Redesigning the Future

«Redesigning the Future» was the theme of this summer’s conference hosted by EMCC Global (digital), the 27th in a row. In these post-corona times, it is quite right to think in new directions. We have seen a boom of webinars and now it is the new channel for us and also the podcast is coming. Our global president Riza Kadilar mentioned in 2019 a coaching app that had 500,000 downloads this summer (2021) the same app 2.5 million downloads.

I do not think anyone will lose the job of a robot, but we must find ways to integrate our work and practice with relevant technology. At the same time, we must also find ways to create digital communities where we can improve the ongoing dialogue between recipients and practitioners.

EMCC focuses on the digital that will play and save role to improve our services and our offerings and at the same time they will also put and special focus on hosting platforms.

In any case, I think I am at the forefront of development when I am a member of an organization with over 10,000 members in 85 different countries that has this as its focus.

At least I’m excited to being part of redesigning the future the EMCC way … what about you?

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How to find a mentor post Covid-19

Photo by Hello I’m Nik on Unsplash

Experts says that mentoring will be even more important after the pandemic. But finding a mentor won’t be easy. So even more important to listen to us «profesionals», Joshua Daniel wrote a good article called «6 Ways to Find a Mentor Post-COVID». He is working in Korn Ferry as a Career Coach and says:

«Judging from the social media profile, it looks like a match. You both share similar interests and experiences. Her posts are both funny and informative, giving the impression that you can laugh and learn from her. She has the experience you don’t (but need). And the best part is that there are mutual connections in common to provide an introduction. So should you ask this person to be your mentor?

Few people question the value of a mentor, but studies show that most workers—54% in one survey—don’t have one. And the pandemic and remote work has only made it harder, of course, given the challenge and awkwardness of trying to find one virtually. “There’s an element of tact needed when approaching someone regarding a potential mentoring relationship.»”

Read the whole article here

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Mentoring is a powerful tool

My mentorblog is all about mentoring — what it is, how it works, how you can learn it and also how you can use mentoring to reach your goal!

Mentoring is a powerful and popular way for people to learn a variety of personal and professional skills. In fact, they say that mentoring is one of the oldest forms of influence. And I have been so lucky to work with mentoring and mentoring program for a lot of years now and find it still fascinating.

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Mentoring program in Covid-19 times…

In the middle of one of my mentoring programs Covid-19 strikes. And then Norway went into total look down, and almost everything was closed (schools, children garden, bars, restaurant etc) and we were not allowed to meet people. it was like you almost need a permit to go to your office.

In my department all started to use Microsoft Teams, for teaching, training, meetings and discussions. So for one of my mentoring programs it was quite easy to start using Teams for meeting their mentee or mentor.

So when we where closing down the program after one year, we also used Teams, for discussions, feedback and small talks. We misses to meet in real life (IRL), but this was ok as a replacement. But we all miss the dinner.

So yet another program is over and I think the meeting on Teams was a good replacement, but next time we are hopefully back IRL.

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Mental health – can we use mentoring

Mentalhealth.gov says that Mental health includes our emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It affects how we think, feel, and act. It also helps determine how we handle stress, relate to others, and make choices. Mental health is important at every stage of life, from childhood and adolescence through adulthood.

Over the course of your life, if you experience mental health problems, your thinking, mood, and behavior could be affected.

In the last year with pandemic and lock downs mental health has been more than buzz words, and of course more people have been affected. I always have faith in mentoring and what that can do, but I read this article on linkedin.com that I also want you to read.

Nicola Cronin says that the 2020 Mental Health Awareness Week theme is kindness — which couldn’t be more relevant given the state of the world right now.

Since Covid-19 spread across the globe, isolating people to their homes and disrupting the way we live, something that has stood out most is kindness. Our social media feeds are brimming with stories of acts of kindness from strangers, neighbours are speaking for the first time ever, communities are thriving. 

But what aboutbmentoring? Well at its core, mentoring is about helping another person. The term mentor refers to somebody who advises, supports and guides another in the right direction.

There are many benefits of mentoring, which is why this type of relationship is established in schools, universities and organisations the world over. Many celebrities have cited their mentors as having played a huge role in their success, and finding a mentor is on the top of many people’s career development lists. But less often discussed is the positive impact for both the mentee and the mentor that the relationship has on mental health and wellbeing.

Read the whole article here

Photo by Dan Meyers on Unsplash
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Post Covid-19

Companies around the globe are struggling to manage and motivate their workforces and enable productivity while dealing with economic uncertainty and layoffs. And while it may seem odd to think about employee retention during this crisis, there’s never been a more important time to focus on how you are supporting your employees—and the future of your business.

This is the words from Katherine Plumhoff in here article
«The COVID-19 Crisis is a Mentorship Opportunity: Here’s How to Take Advantage of It»

Its the first article I am reading about post covid-19 and I could not be more agreed. In these crisis you must ensure that your employee are ok and feeling taken care off.

And she is very practical, and says that: mentorship is one of the most cost-effective ways you can invest in training and promoting diverse talent. You don’t need to shell out for expensive conferences. You probably already know who the rising stars at the junior levels of your organization are. You just need to set them up with someone more senior who can help them navigate the transition to a leadership role.

Read the whole article her: https://www.tlnt.com/the-covid-19-crisis-is-a-mentorship-opportunity-heres-how-to-take-advantage-of-it/

About the writer Katherine Plumhoff
Katherine Plumhoff is a writer, editor, and researcher at PowerToFly, the platform for fast-tracking gender equality. She crafts stories about women in the workplace, feminism, and cross-cultural communication. Formerly a team manager at a hedge fund in NYC, she’s now a full-time content creator based in Latin America.

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How to ask someone to be your mentor

Mentorship has a big impact on workplace wellness and productivity. Nine in 10 workers, 91%, who have a career mentor say they are happy in their jobs (https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/16/nine-in-10-workers-who-have-a-mentor-say-they-are-happy-in-their-jobs.html ).
In contrast, four out of 10 professionals who don’t have a mentor have considered quitting in the last quarter.

«The benefits of mentorship are clear, so why doesn’t everyone have a mentor? Companies often create mentorship programs, but individuals may be left to choose for themselves whether they want to participate. And simply being assigned a mentor likely isn’t enough to foster a real difference in happiness at work via any of the measures noted above». Source CNBC.

It is important that the potential mentee get to choose to be in a mentoring program, because you have to get all in…

Try your best to be IN a mentoring program, get your company to start one if they don’t have one yet.

But after trying to get a mentoring program within your company, you still are on your own. Relax, here is the dos and don’ts. The source is GetSmarter.

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Peer-to-peer mentoring at Amazon

Amazon is one of the big companies who is using mentoring for their employee, their global peer-to-peer mentoring programme is called Amazon Circle and that fosters connections between employees, helping to build more meaningful relationships.

Peer mentoring is a form of mentorship that usually takes place between a person who has lived through a specific experience (peer mentor) and a person who is new to that experience (the peer mentee).

Read the whole article and be amazed over the work Karl Viedge in the Amazon UK do for their employees. Read the article here