April 13th Coaching Call

“Mentorship helps you identify the strategies and techniques that work and helps you follow through with them in the process.”

- Igor Kheifets

What to look for in a mentor and how to make mentorship effective

Look for someone 3 steps ahead of you.
Doers aren’t always great teachers. Sometimes it pays to learn from someone with a less impressive resume.
They’re human, they’ve got flaws. This doesn’t mean they’re not good mentors.
Do as the mentor says, not as the mentor does.
Don’t ever get mentored for free.

1
Information alone isn’t enough: imagine kids in a classroom with workbooks, but no teacher, that is how information is with no mentor.
2
Implementation: when you have a mentor, you’ll be forced to implement what you learned.
3
The role model effect: modeling is the first stage of learning. The first thing humans do after birth is to model other people’s behavior and actions. So, mentoring gets you so close to the mentor and you get to model them.
4
The sensei effect: people are naturally willing to please their teachers.
5
Mentor’s psychological commitment to your success: your mentor’s commitment makes you more committed.