30 JUL, 2019
Yes, there is plenty of rhetoric on the benefits of having a mentor. Internet giant and co-founder of Alibaba Group, Jack Maa in one of his recent interviews said, “You benefit from a mentor when you’re starting out, join a good company in your 20s and find a good boss to learn how to do business.” Ex Pepsico CEO, Indra Nooyi credits her success to mentors. In her words, “If I hadn’t had mentors, I wouldn’t be here today. I’m a product of great mentoring, great coaching.”
In today’s fast-paced economy and competitive business landscapes, ‘Find a Mentor’ is excellent career advice. But what about ‘Find Someone to Mentor?’ I think that’s equally great advice too. Except that we don’t hear much about the benefits of being a mentor in the context of career growth. Not as much as we hear about the benefits of being mentored in the context of professional ascension. Playing the role of a mentor can benefit you as much as it benefits a mentee. Apart from being an extremely rewarding experience, there are ample skillsets that a mentor can ‘build and hone’ during a mentoring journey:
- Enhance one’s active listening skills. Absolutely paramount to authentic communication, this one
- View the same-old, same-old with another pair of eyes (fresher perspectives, fresher ideas anyone?)
- Fine-tune that empathetic radar (a touchy-feely quality, yes, but a must-have to build harmonious relationships, both in and out of office)
- Work and interact effectively with folks from diverse backgrounds and work experiences (a global work-force reality today)
- And; finally, let’s not forget that gratifying experience you feel when you help someone up that career ladder. Priceless!
In fact, according to a report titled, ‘The Top Employee Mentoring Trends For 2019’
by Forbes, mentoring will become a centre stage business priority. Why? Because many successful organizations (https://www.investopedia.com/articles/personal-finance/022315/best-fortune-500-mentorship-programs.asp) have now for a while been responding to a notable shift in the industry. The collective consensus seems to be that while attractive benefits, bonuses and pay raises can help get top talents’ foot in the door, a significant factor that will retain them is meaningful work that is connected to their professional and personal growth.
Still wondering why we are making much ado about mentoring? We suggest you give our Tavisca employees an ear! An impressive lot of sixty have signed up to mentor a whooping number of 120 freshers this year and here’s why.
About the Author: Nothing much really. Kavitha is an aspiring writer, a true blue dreamer, a control freak and then there is that bit in her, that people refer to as ‘Pollyanna’.
