The Mentorship, Guidance and Decision-Making Process | Selecting a Mentor Who Doesn’t Take Over

Mentorship is a great way to advance yourself and your career. Selecting the right mentor, based on the goals you want to achieve, is key to your success working together. It’s very important to ensure you choose someone who will guide you, present options you might not see and teach you ways to navigate obstacles, rather than someone who makes the decisions for you.

Allowing someone else to make choices for you will lead you down a path that you are not necessarily meant to travel, pulling you away from your purpose and your vision. Instead, working with someone who will help you evaluate the information in front of you, so you can make a decision that is right for you, will accelerate your growth in all areas of your life.

Always remember, you are the CEO of your life, and your mentor should be there to help you see more possibilities in the situations you face, and then allow you to make your own choices.

What are some factors that will make a mentorship successful?

When you are choosing a master mentor, that person will be someone who has integrity, a passion for sharing knowledge, a willingness to listen, and a healthy network of contacts they can leverage on your behalf. That last part is key. The power of association can advance you and your vision so much faster because really big goals just can’t be completed alone.

Also consider:

• Their values.
• Their area of expertise.
• Whether they have a repeatable process to create success, or in other words, if they’ve done what they’ve done more than once.
• The level of trust and respect between you.
• Whether you can communicate openly and honestly together.
• The person’s understanding and openness to other perspectives.
• Their level of perseverance when faced with obstacles.

In your first interactions with a prospective mentor, notice how comfortable you feel, whether that person lets you express your ideas and goals fully, and the level of connection you have. Trust your gut feeling, it will never steer you wrong.

If the person you are considering checks all the boxes above, you likely have someone who will be a great guide, rather than one who takes over and makes decisions for you. That will make for a powerful mentorship.

What are the key goals of mentorship?

The reason you seek mentorships is to accelerate your personal and professional development and to support you in identify avoidable pitfalls along your journey. Your mentor will guide you and give you feedback based on their experience. This is why it’s so important for you to understand what you want to achieve from the mentorship and make sure your mentor’s experience aligns with your goals.

That means, to find the right mentor you need to carefully reflect on how you would like to progress in your life or business.

• What is your five-year plan and your ultimate goals?
• What steps do you plan on taking to achieve these goals?
• Are there gaps in your skills?
• Where is your business lacking or what areas of your life need some support to get to a new level?

Establishing your goals and identifying your areas of weakness, will help you find the mentor you need to take you to the next level.

What are the 3 C’s of mentorship?

Once you select your mentor, there are three things you need to engage to get the most out of the relationship.

Clarity – You need to be very clear about where you want to go, the goals you want to reach and the obstacles you feel you face right now.

Your mentor needs to be very clear with their guidance, how they can help you reach your goals, and the advice they can share.

If there is something that isn’t clear on either side, you both need to feel comfortable enough to ask clarifying questions to make sure you are on track with the things you want to achieve.

Communication – This is a major component of success for every relationship in your life, especially with your mentor. Listening is a skill you both need to master. The better you can listen and communicate based on what you hear, the less likely the chances for miscommunication or frustrations, and the more likely you will be to achieve your goals.

It’s also important to remember that mentoring is a two-way street. Your openness and transparency will ensure the best outcome. In a relationship that can last months or years, the knowledge shared between you will inform your perspectives throughout your lives. That means you both must have a willingness to learn, share and be open to new perspectives together.

Commitment – Likely, you both have busy schedules and each of you must honor that. That means, when you book your mentoring meetings, you must both be prepared to show up and stay focused for the duration of the meeting.

To make that easier, come prepared. Select a few topics that you want to discuss and depending on your mentor you may want to send those topics to them ahead of time, so they can be ready for the meeting.

That said, it isn’t necessary to have an agenda. In fact, an agenda can get in the way of spontaneous conversation, which can be fruitful for both of you.

Always remember that your mentor is there to give you mentorship and guidance as you navigate through your decision-making process, but that person isn’t there to take over. You must always be in charge of the steps you take, so you can build the future you want.

As your relationship progresses, continue to evaluate its success. If it helps you achieve your goals, and brings value to your personal and professional life, you have selected the perfect mentor.

If you are looking for a mentor who can help you get clarity, stay grounded and focus in on the areas that will accelerate your growth, I invite you to apply for my Master Mentor Program. CLICK HERE TO SEE EVERYTHING THE PROGRAM INCLUDES.