When a talented professional joins an organization and gains a senior executive in the same department or function as her mentor, this senior is likely to guide and groom her in her development as a competent leader, a strategist, and a complete business professional. The mentor is a source of wisdom for this mentee, and their impact is lasting, not only in this organization but where the junior employee shifts to in her career.

Today, Corporate organizations have realized the significance of and impact that a mentor can have on a new recruit or junior executive. And to this end, they not only prepare their senior staff to mentor juniors with training, but they also take the help of independent Professional Mentor Organizations to provide support in this area.

Mentorship is crucial because it offers employees the opportunity to grow, and develop into more competent professionals. It also helps them prepare for future growth opportunities.

Benefits of being a Mentee

As a ground rule, a mentee has to understand the role of the mentor as a facilitator and not a solution provider. This is critical for success in this mentor-mentee relationship. What do you, as a recruit, learn from a professional mentor?

• You will learn from their experiences and wisdom a lot of practical, hands-on advice, support, and encouragement. The mentor opens up new perspectives from angles you might not even have thought of. This helps you grow and opens up new possibilities.
• Professional Networking. Having a mentor opens one up to networking with other, experienced people in your field and helps you to connect better with your colleagues.
• You can learn to communicate more effectively, just like your mentor. This will help you be more socially confident and effective at work.
• Clarity on your career goals and direction. You get a realistic, insider, view of your industry and scope. Converse with them to fine-focus your energies and maximize your potential.
• Gives you insights into an organization’s culture and systems, so you can be more professional.
• Your personal growth and performance can be enhanced by learning with a mentor’s feedback and introspections.
• Your decision-making skills will be developed. This is because you are not presented with ready solutions, but with the ammunition to arrive at your own decisions and act upon them.
• Exposure to new points of view. Perspectives are important, especially in a work situation that involves both dealing with colleagues and with external publics, like vendors, customers, prospects, etc. This teaches you to be more objective, to think laterally, and to explore new ideas. You will grow as a well-rounded, mature, professional.
• Your mentor takes you under their wing, takes a long-range view of your growth trajectory, and helps you see the destination clearly. Since you are encouraged to find solutions on your own on how to reach there, your initiative and enterprise will be developed.

As a mentee, you might have an in-house mentor who is a senior guiding you informally. It is also possible that they have been assigned to mentor you by the company. It is important to understand that a mentee can learn a lot about their own organization’s business, culture, and work environment from such a mentor

If a mentor is from an external professional program, you as a mentee, get to benefit from a vastly different world within the same industry space. You can also get exposed to more senior professionals from various other organizations because they are connections that your mentor has put you on to. You gain more referred experience from a wider bank of professionals.

To Sum Up

As a mentee, you can learn a lot from a mentor. They can make a material difference in your career and life. When you enter into a mentee-mentor relationship, come in with realistic expectations about the role, and how you can benefit. A willingness to work hard is a prerequisite to creating a mutually rewarding connection.

At Intercell, we have mentors not only from India but across the world with vast industry experience, they are available for virtual personalised one to one sessions.

So, what are you waiting for? Book a session at www.intercellworld.com