How do you become a better leader?
That's certainly not an easy question to answer, and there are plenty of possible answers, techniques, and strategies you could potentially use. Just look over the internet - you'll find websites overflowing with content and potential ideas.
But how do you sift through the noise and actually get to a straight answer on how you empower future leaders, whether yourself or others?
The truth is, no article or guide is going to actually help you be a better leader. No blog post has a definitive answer that will push the needle of your skills dramatically in a positive direction.
Why?
Because your leadership journey is your own. You have your own strengths, perks, and situations. Your own weakness, drawbacks, and obstacles. Everyone does. Therefore, there's no one-size-fits-all approach.
Unless you're referring to how you overcome this.
Enter leadership mentoring programs - an essential tool to help aspiring leaders grow and develop.
When you have a mentor by your side, an experienced leader of your own offering personalized advice and strategy, it's like having a personal guide who helps you navigate the often-turbulent waters of leadership.
In this guide, I'll share personal insights, experiences, and practical tips on how leadership mentoring can empower future leaders and help ensure your journey to proper leadership is productive and fruitful.
Let's dive in!
The Power of Mentoring – Why It Matters
Mentoring is a powerful way to support individuals in their personal and professional development. When it comes to leadership, having a mentor can be a game-changer.
There's a reason 100% of the top 50 Fortune 500 companies in the US have a mentorship program, as do 92% of the top 500.
And the statistics don't stop there.
There's a reason 76% of people think having a mentor is important - because it gets results, especially when it comes to technical roles and developing your leadership skills.
And it makes sense. Sure, people can have the traits of a natural leader. They're just born that way. However, real leaders invest time and energy in themselves and their leadership skills, getting things wrong and learning from their mistakes.
The strive to be better and having leadership development from someone who's "above" them and has already been through that process can make all the difference.
No longer do today's leaders have to figure everything out for themselves, which takes too much time and can lead to serious problems if things get bad. Instead, leaders can fast-track to learn everything people already need to know, allowing them to focus on innovation and disrupting their industries in the most modern, forward-thinking ways.
This is why running a leadership mentoring program is so important, alongside these other benefits;
Leadership Mentoring Accelerates Growth 🌱
Mentors help mentees gain valuable insights, allowing them to learn from someone who has already walked their path. This can speed up their growth and help them avoid common pitfalls.
Once again, and I can't stress this enough, imagine learning everything about being a leader from the ground up. The mistakes made here can be catastrophic and expensive for a large company or venture.
In the case of a leader, it could ruin a company.
Instead, mentors can guide their mentees, or your up-and-coming leaders, on what they already know, giving them the perspective to thrive and focus on what's important rather than just repeatedly learning everything we already know.
Leadership Mentoring Expands Networks 🌐
Mentors often have well-established networks, which can open doors for their mentees. These connections can lead to new opportunities, collaborations, and partnerships. In so many business cases, it's not what you know that will help you succeed but who you know.
When leaders get access to some of the top leaders and people within an industry, they can ghost, learn, and thrive - something that's pretty much impossible when they're isolated in their own roles.
Leadership Mentoring Boosts Confidence 💪
A mentor's support and guidance can help mentees build confidence in their abilities, making it easier for them to take on leadership roles. When they know how to proceed in any given situation, they can approach it with gusto and zest instead of tiptoeing, which wastes time and resources, and opens the door for potential human error.
How to Find the Right Mentor for You and Your Business
It doesn't matter whether you're looking to empower yourself as a leader or you're investing in the leaders of your business or venture, the trick to success is finding the right mentor for the job.
Sure, you might jump at the chance to work with a mentor who has experience working in enterprises like Google or Uber, but they may not actually be right for you, your leaders, and your business. You need to find the right person for the job.
Sure, this can take time, perhaps more time than you want, but if you set up your leadership mentoring program in the right way, the results can sustainably last for decades to come.
Here's how you can find a mentor that aligns with your goals and values and can help you achieve the vision you're trying to bring to life:
Identify Your Needs 🎯
Before you start your search, take some time to think about what you want from a mentor. Consider your strengths, weaknesses, and areas where you need guidance.
Think about your values and what kind of goals you're trying to achieve. What sort of leadership skills are you trying to work on? What problems are you facing that you're struggling to overcome? What benefits are you trying to get from your mentoring programs?
What focuses do other leadership mentoring programs in your industry have that you may be missing out on?
Defining all these criteria before you begin your search is the best way to find a mentor who can best support your growth and journey into your preferred leadership positions.
Look Within Your Network 👥
Your existing network might hold the perfect mentor for you.
While there's undoubtedly a ton of benefit to looking for industry-leading mentors to work with (believe us, that's kind of our jam here at MentorCruise), the truth is that the perfect mentor could be right under your nose.
After all, if someone already knows you, has the leadership skills you want, and understands the business you're in, isn't that ideal?
Maybe you have a leader in a senior position who knows the business like the back of their hand. Surely they would be ideal for educating the next wave of talent within your industry?
With this in mind, ask colleagues, friends, or professional contacts for recommendations. You might be surprised by who they suggest!
Reach Out and Connect 🤝
Once you've identified potential mentors with the leadership skills you're looking for, don't hesitate to reach out.
Send them a message expressing your interest and ask if they'd be open to a conversation. Be genuine and specific about why you admire their work and how you think they can help you.
61% of mentorship relationships happen naturally, so there's no reason you need to try too hard or get things right the first time. Just be yourself and be natural, and let the relationship properly form.
Contrary to popular belief, mentor-mentee relationships work both ways, and the mentee can give to the mentor just as much as the mentor can give to the mentee. Find creative and innovative ways to give back, and you'll begin to see the relationship start to soar.
Building a Successful Mentor-Mentee Relationship 🏗️
When it comes to leadership development through the use of mentoring programs, you could do everything you could to invest in the programs, but the truth is that it comes down to the relationships your participants have.
A great mentor-mentee relationship is built on trust, communication, and commitment; without that, your leadership training programs will never produce the results you want.
With this in mind, here are some tips to help you build a strong bond with your mentor:
Set Clear Expectations ⚖️
Discuss your goals and expectations with your leadership mentor from the outset. Be honest about what you hope to achieve, and ask your mentor what they expect from you.
This will help you both stay on the same page and work together effectively. As is the truth with any kind of relationship, success comes from clarity and being on the same page. Absolutely take time to make sure you both know what the goals are and the direction you want to head in.
This helps to keep efforts focused and on track rather than reproductively bouncing around on various tangents, which can happen way faster than you may think it does!
Communicate Regularly 📞
Schedule regular check-ins with your mentor to discuss your progress, challenges, and any new developments. This will help you maintain a strong connection and ensure you're both up-to-date on each other's thoughts and concerns.
It really doesn't matter how you do this or how connected you want to be. Some relationships will be happy to drop texts casually every day, whereas others may prefer to have a weekly or bi-weekly call or meeting.
It's really up to you and what you're trying to achieve through your leadership development programs. Just take the time to organize it and set it up so there's a framework where both people can work too.
Don't forget, if you feel like you need to change things down the line, you can do so.
Nothing is ever set in stone!
Be Open to Feedback 🗣️
Your mentor is there to help you grow, so be open to their feedback and suggestions. Listen actively, and try to implement their advice when possible.
Remember, leadership styles can vary from person to person, but this isn't a bad thing. When developing your own leadership style and soft leadership skills, it's important to take on as much information as you can so you can constantly be learning and will be able to channel your own style.
Great leaders never stop learning and will always see themselves as a student, learning and onboarding new information whenever they can to help better their own approach. A good mentor understands this and will happily challenge their mentee to ensure this happens.
Tips for Mentors: Empowering Your Mentee 🎓
Mentees commonly become mentors at some point in their careers because it allows them to give back, and they understand how much value it can provide.
Therefore, whether you're a mentee or mentor already, understanding how to be or to empower a mentee can be very beneficial.
Understanding what makes a good mentor can also help you choose the best mentor to work with yourself!
Here are some tips to help mentors provide effective guidance:
Share Your Experience 📚
One of the most valuable aspects of mentoring is sharing your own experiences, both successes, and failures. Mentors must be open and vulnerable in this way and need to understand that nobody's perfect.
There will be times everyone soars and falls. Mistakes will be made, but a good mentor understands this is required for good leadership. Otherwise, in what situations will you learn how to be better?
Vulnerability is a pillar of all successful leaders, and being open like this is one of the best ways to help mentees gain confidence and not be afraid to innovate.
Ask Thought-Provoking Questions ❓
Rather than simply providing answers to mentees, it's essential that mentors try to ask questions that encourage their mentee to think critically and develop their problem-solving skills.
This helps mentees become more self-reliant, independent, and capable of making well-informed decisions. It helps them to become great leaders and develop the leadership qualities needed to thrive.
Be Patient and Supportive 🤗
It's crucial to remember that everyone learns at a different pace, and mentors need to exercise patience and support every step of the way.
Yes, it'll be frustrating when a mentee simply doesn't "get it," but everyone has topics and subjects they stumble on. There are some areas where mentees will thrive and others where they'll need a bit of extra time.
Fortunately, this is a great opportunity for existing leaders and mentors to develop these important skills. Patience is, after all, one of the most important leadership qualities and one all the best leaders are always working on.
As a rule of thumb, offer encouragement and celebrate the relationship's successes, no matter how small. This can help emerging leaders really step into their own.
Encourage Networking and Connections 🕸️
Be proactive when introducing your mentee to people in your network, helping them expand their connections. This will help open the door to new opportunities for them and give them access to new resources that support their growth.
By allowing your mentee to interact with new groups of people, you can truly unlock their leadership potential, improve their presentation skills, enhance communication skills, converse with prospective leaders, senior executives, current leaders, and so much more, giving them the ability to really expand their horizons and knowledge.
How to Measure the Success of a Leadership Mentoring Program 📈
As you go through your mentorship journey, one of the most crucial steps you can take the time to evaluate the impact of the mentoring relationship. Sure, you may feel that all is going well (or maybe not too well), but proactively evaluating allows you to see exactly what's going on, assess how everyone is feeling, and then make things better.
It's the only way to help ensure both the mentor and mentee grow. Here are some ways to measure success:
Goal Achievement 🎉
As mentioned above, setting goals is the key to an effective mentoring process, so reviewing these goals is the first step to evaluating your process. How much progress have you made towards them? Are they done? Are there any tweaks to the process that need to be made?
Don't forget to celebrate the wins and how much progress has been made, but don't hold back when it comes to tweaking to improve things.
Personal and Professional Growth 🌳
The evaluation process doesn't just have to happen between both you and your mentor, but you can evaluate yourself and how you think you're doing.
Reflect on the leadership skills and knowledge you've gained through the mentoring process. Consider how these have impacted your personal and professional life. How have you applied what you've learned to a real-life context?
Are you using your skills effectively? Are you using active listening skills when involved in one on one conversations? Are you developing your emotional intelligence? Are you growing in self-awareness? How are your soft skills?
But actually, looking at yourself and seeing how far you've come, you'll be able to see what you're doing well and what you want to improve on. Be critical but fair.
Impact on Leadership Abilities 🏆
And finally, and perhaps most importantly, take a moment to assess how the mentoring relationship has impacted your leadership skills.
Are you more confident and capable of taking on leadership roles? Has your mentor provided valuable guidance that has helped shape your leadership style? Are your skills applicable if you were to manage a skilled workforce?
It's all well and good learning the theory of what it takes to be a good leader, but applying it to the real world is a whole different ballpark, but nonetheless essential if you want to succeed.
Embracing the Art of a Leadership Mentoring Program 🎨
Investing in your leadership development through a leadership mentoring program is a powerful way to empower future leaders and support their growth.
By finding the right mentor, building a strong relationship, and measuring your progress, you can unlock your full potential and become the leader you were meant to be.
Embrace the art of leadership mentoring, and watch your leadership abilities soar! 🚀
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