(This article was originally published in 2015).
I lost two people who were very, very important to me last fall. They had both been my mentors.
The first was my mom who has been my personal mentor throughout my life. She guided me from birth and sacrificed enormously on my behalf.
There is absolutely no doubt I would have never accomplished the things I have done without her wise counsel and assistance.
The second was a senior officer who took me “under his wing” when I was a young cadet at West Point.
Don was a professional mentor I could always turn to for guidance and counsel specifically about my military career. He also provided critical advice and analysis for many of the national security issues that I became involved in while working in the Pentagon, National Security Council Staff in the White House, and other efforts that I have been involved in since retiring from the military.
I always knew that he was only a phone call away despite the fact that we were not frequently assigned to the same location and might not see each other for several years.
I could always call him day-or-night to seek his advice and assistance.
But what exactly is “mentoring” and why is it important?
Mentoring has been described as a dynamic relationship in which a more experienced person (the mentor) acts as a guide, role model, teacher, and sponsor of a less experienced person (the mentee). It is based on several distinct elements including:
Reciprocity, collegiality, authenticity, and mutuality.
Intentional role modeling
A “safe harbor” for self-exploration (disclosure)
Transformation particularly of the mentee’s professional identity
A connection that endures
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In it Jeff share....
What makes a mentor effective
The transition from mentee to mentor
Creating a mentoring culture