Introduction
My childhood home tutor, Mrs. John, has been the best mentor in my life. My love for literature, reading, and writing was greatly influenced by her mentoring technique, which was a special fusion of conventional and avant-garde methods. Now that I have learned more about mentorship, it is interesting to contrast Mrs. John’s mentoring approach with the takeaways from my mentoring module.
Similarities
Personal Connection Establishment
Initiating a personal connection with the mentee remains paramount, a fact emphasized by both Mrs. John and the mentoring curriculum. To successfully personalize counseling, Mrs. John took the time to learn about my interests, talents, and weaknesses—just as Andrew Deen’s module content recommended. Deen (n.d.) supports this in a paragraph: “When it comes to networking… if you talk about yourself too much and push too hard, you’re likely to turn people off”. The quoted paragraph highlights the advantages of forming a personal relationship with a mentor. It also means that one is likely to obtain insightful advice and assistance when approaching mentorship with a sincere interest in the other person and their experiences.
Having an Objective
Mrs. John emphasized the importance of goal creation and helped me achieve this by urging me to set a goal of reading five books in a week and writing personal summaries for each one. The mentorship module also advocated for this approach, as noted by Chronus LLC (2023), with the goal of “Translate your vision into SMART objectives: specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-bound.” This mentorship module quote suggests that the mentee should break down their goals into the smallest units, allowing them to easily attain the overall goal by accomplishing smaller targets.
Positive Feedback
Mrs. John would review my reading summaries and then provide feedback on areas for improvement, which made me feel like the best writer and analyst. She similarly insisted that in life, generally, I should learn to say ‘Thank You’ when shown humanity and ‘Sorry’ when wrong. Regarding the mentorship module, in the feedback link, Wooll (2022) confirms that it is necessary to express gratitude to people who take the time to share their viewpoints and offer insightful commentary. Wooll added that being appreciative makes mentors happy and willing to help again next time.
Supporting and Encouraging
I recall that at one point, Mrs. John referred two of her students to me for private tutoring at my home. This inspired me and boosted my confidence in literature and writing, and I grew to believe I was the best writer and literature analyst; likewise, the mentorship module reinforces this concept. Millennials in law enforcement (2020) asserts that “Millennials want to feel like they belong in a work setting; they also want personalized feedback and support.
One way to offer that support is through a mentorship program, where seasoned officers provide advice to recruits”. By this statement, the mentorship module considers personalized positive feedback and offering support as key pillars of mentorship. Additionally, the module confirmed that organizations satisfy millennials’ desire for direction and assistance by providing mentorship programs.
Differences
Structure Formality
Based on my module reading, it was necessary to have a formal structure with check-ins and recorded growth goals. Wooll (2022), as part of the materials, established that “Mentorship programs need structure to be successful. To do this, outline the various milestones and endpoints of the program.” Conversely, Mrs. John’s mentorship sessions were informal, with irregular and unplanned conversations and feedback.
Technological Application
In our mentorship with Mrs. John, we did not go the digital way. On the contrary, digital mentorship platforms were highly encouraged by the mentorship module, especially for employees during the COVID-19 pandemic, as they reduced feelings of loneliness (Wooll, 2022).
Conclusion
In summary, Mrs. John’s and the mentorship module share similarities in the following concepts: building personal connections, setting goals, offering constructive criticism, and providing support. The points of difference were mentorship formality and technological adoption. This analogy highlights the importance of mentoring being adaptive and flexible to meet the specific needs and circumstances of each mentee and mentoring relationship.
References
Chronus LLC (2023). 5 step guide for successful mentorship programs.
Deen, A. (n.d.). The beginner’s guide to networking without any connections. PushFar.
PowerDMS. (2020). Millennials in law enforcement: Recruiting, training, supervising.
Wooll, M. (2022). The surprising benefits of workplace mentorship and how to make it work. BetterUp.