Mentorship has been defined in various terms but simply put, it is a relationship between an experienced person (mentor), and a less experienced person (mentee), that provides the mentee with guidance on personal and professional development as well as encouraging reflection and learning from decision making (Keane et al).
The benefits of this relationship have been espoused; including career progression, improved research productivity, and increased academic achievement. Mentorship also provides the advantages of psychosocial support, self confidence in dealing with patients and overall career satisfaction (Henry-Noel et al, Keane et al, Sambunjak)
Benefits to the mentor
In terms of benefits, mentorship is not a one way street. It has benefits to both mentor and mentee. Mentors report a host of benefits ranging from an increased sense of purpose and professional satisfaction to learning about new developments or even re-learning old knowledge. Mentors also report increased exposure to novel ideas from their mentees and increased institutional recognition as a result of mentorship. (Henry-Noel)
Features of an ideal mentor
Despite the benefits of a mentorship relationship, it is important to note that not everyone can be a successful mentor. Some key features you should look out for when looking for a mentor include an altruistic personality, great interpersonal skills and professional status.
- Altruistic Personality: A great mentor finds the process of contributing to your progress intrinsically rewarding. If someone is satisfied by helping you without seeking personal gain, that’s a sign of a good mentor. Other features of an altruistic mentor are honesty and sincerity in their interactions and approachability.
- Interpersonal Skills: A potential mentor should have cultivated effective communication skills. They should have insights into their own strengths and limitations, and should be able to understand your concerns and address them in a constructive manner. This is a crucial part of an effective mentorship relationship.
- Professional Status: One of the reasons people seek mentors is to aid career progression. Hence it is not surprising that mentees look for someone with a strong reputation and influence in the given field. A mentor with greater professional influence can look out for your interest, help expand your professional network and protect you from negative experiences.
Your responsibilities as a mentee:
If you want to make a mentoring relationship work, you bear some of the responsibility of making things work. As a mentee, you have to take the initiative in making contact with potential mentors. This involves networking, reaching out early to make yourself known to potential mentors and initiating meetings. A mentee has the responsibility to ensure they select mentors that are a good fit. It is also the responsibility of the mentee to clearly communicate goals and actively participate in the relationship by completing tasks, organising meetings and maintaining communication.
Finding the right mentor
Define the kind of relationship you want:
In general, you can have a formal mentor or an informal mentor. Formal mentors usually become your mentor through a formal arrangement on request. It would usually involve very structured meetings and accountability reviews measured against pre-set goals. Informal mentorship would often occur as a result of a prior relationship with an individual that a mentee admires. Once trust is built over time, the mentee would often go to that individual for advise and a different perspective on an ‘as needed’ basis. There is often no formal structured arrangement.
It is up to you as a mentee, to seek the type of relationship you want. In medicine, it is possible to maintain multiple informal mentoring relationships in our personal and professional lives. They are often colleagues, friends or acquaintances we admire. This helps with giving different perspectives as well as a broad network of support. It is more difficult to maintain multiple formal mentoring relationships as they require more input but the major pro is the structure, continuity and accountability such a relationship provides.
Determine what you value most in a mentor
While this may seem the same as point one, the key feature here is character traits. Do you value someone who is easy to get along with, that has great communication and interpersonal skills? Or do you prioritise someone with great networks and influence who can also act as your sponsor when it matters? These things will vary depending on your current situation and goals. You need to decide this beforehand. Also, as your career progresses in medicine, your goals will change and so will your mentors and that is okay.
Carry out a background check
Before approaching a mentor, do your homework. In addition, it can help to reach out to previous mentees and juniors who have worked with a potential mentor before deciding if such a person is right for you. When you are looking for a mentor, knowledge is power. Often, a potential mentor will appreciate that you’ve done your research.
Networking
After deciding what you value most in a mentor and the type of relationship you want. You’ve run your background check on people that meet your requirements. The next step is to reach out. It is important to put yourself in positions where you are able to meet or be introduced to your potential mentor. Be bold in introducing yourself. Send them a personal, well thought-out email. You may get multiple rejections but you are bound to eventually get positive responses. It is also important to bear in mind that people are busy and sometimes persistence helps, but use your judgement.
Clearly communicate your goals
An important step is to communicate your goals early enough in the relationship. This keeps you accountable and will allow you and your mentor measure your progress. It is also important to state this at the start, so your mentor knows if they are suited to helping you attain your goals and if so, how best to go about it. Sometimes, when approaching seniors in medicine, we think it is detrimental to show ambition or be demanding. However this is one of those situations where clearly stating your needs is advantageous to both parties. Save yourself time and do it early.
Maintaining the relationship
Like every relationship, if a mentoring relationship is to be successful, it needs constant nurturing. The relationship must be beneficial to both mentor and mentee. Much of the responsibility of actively maintaining the relationship falls on the mentee. It is said that mentorship is what you do for yourself through the help of others. Below are ways you can maintain a mentorship relationship.
Mentorship is what you do for yourself through the help of others
Initiate meetings:
As a mentee, you will have to take responsibility of initiating meetings at intervals that are needed to meet the goals you have set. In addition to making the initial contact, be proactive about follow up meetings and avoid trying to arrange or reschedule meetings at short notice. Always be respectful of agreed meetings and be punctual. Mentors are usually sought after based on their reputation. This usually means they are busy people. So always show respect for their time.
Give updates
When major events in your professional or personal life occur, keep your mentor informed. Positive events, especially one your mentor has contributed to will give a sense of fulfilment that spurs them on to continue to support you. More importantly, do not hide negative news. If you are unable to complete an agreed task such as a research project, be upfront about it. If you are going through difficulty or have failed assessments or exams, be upfront about it. Open communication will help build trust but also help your mentor know how best to help and support you
Add value
This is one of the most important parts of a successful relationship. It is important that you do not see a mentor as a solution to your problems. Whenever you are asking for advice, come with your own proposed solutions. In a clinical setting, bring up new material or knowledge you have recently discovered that would stimulate discussion with your mentor. Do not be afraid to bring a new perspective to your mentor’s approach and methods, clinically or otherwise. Quite often, a good mentor will be open to learning from a mentee as much as he/she is willing to give advice. In addition, always come prepared. Propose projects that you could take on with your mentor. Do the background research to show why such a project is needed and how you could use their support. Being prepared demonstrates respect for the time your mentor makes available to you
Show appreciation
We discussed earlier how an altruistic mentor that expects nothing from you should be a desired trait. However this does not preclude the fact that we like to feel appreciated. So take time to send an occasional thank you card or even a gift if you can. Introduce them to people you think will be helpful for their own network and acknowledge their support publicly if appropriate. These are all small ways to show appreciation, but they will go a long way to building such a relationship
