Here's why it's worth giving up an hour a month to mentor someone.
Expedite Sustainability
Remember when you were just starting out? You had to work hard and go through the trial and error process in order to find your way. By mentoring, you can give your mentees short cuts to success, so that they can start to fulfil their potential even quicker, speeding up the transition to sustainability in their sphere of influence.
To get a mentor slot click here.
Improve your mental health and resilience
Giving up your time to help others on Sustainability Mentor isn't just good for the planet, it's good for you. Studies show that helping others helps to boost happiness and wards off both anxiety and depression as well as making you live longer. This is great news for making you more productive and effective at work, where stress and anxiety can be at their most ruthless.
Give yourself a morale booster and gain recognition for your skills and experiences
Many sustainability professionals feel somewhat undervalued for their great work. If you do not feel fully valued at work it can often be demoralising. For a sustainability-minded person, being demoralised is the enemy of progress. We all have the human need to feel appreciated. You have been on a long and continuous journey with many ups and downs. By sharing this experience with others and helping them move forward, they will recognise your value, expertise and skills. This will boost your morale on those days when it might be flagging.
Develop your managerial coaching or leadership style and skills
If you are open to continuous learning and growth (and you must be as you are reading this), then you will no doubt be looking to polish your coaching skills. Improving these skills will give you more experience and the extra confidence to lead and coach in other situations, as well as striving for positions above your current level.
Online mentorship. A great ROI for sustainability.
Gain exposure to new ideas and techniques
It is likely that your mentee will be from a different age group, background, and even country. This is a great way to gain new perspectives for innovation. This might help to improve your own process and way of working. Being innovative and open to changing mental boundaries and demographics makes you more resilient, more adaptable and increases your chance of success in an uncertain future.
Be more open to new trends in your profession
When I first got into sustainability, I used to read all the sustainability magazines (showing my age now). But as I progressed my career I just never got the time to check in with those magazines. These magazines were a great way of discovering new developments in the sector. As you get more and more successful you get busier and busier and at the same time you might not get the chance to keep up to date with all of the new trends in your profession. By mentoring, you increase your exposure to the new trends that are coming through.
The pace of change is quicker than ever. Having a mentor is one way to keep up to date and not get left behind.
Unleash the potential of your mistakes
Mistakes are a gift from the universe. They help us to correct course and improve what we do. It's a waste of a mistake if you do not learn something valuable from it. It is an even bigger waste if you don't share that mistake and subsequent learning with others.
Improve your offering
Taking on a mentee looks great on your resume or when the question comes up in an interview. This demonstrates your willingness to help others succeed, which is a vital skill in teams and leadership.
Spot talent early
On Sustainability Entrepreneur, you can get to understand possible candidates in a unique atmosphere. The job interview process is a transparent competitive process managed by your HR department. However, while doing a good turn you might just spot and nurture great talent that could benefit your company.
Inspire more altruism
Studies show that when people see others performing good deeds, they are also more likely to perform good deeds themselves. So by mentoring and talking about your mentoring you will actually increase net kindness!
Professional Development
Taking on a mentee is a natural extension of your ongoing professional development programme.
It gets you out the hum-drum of daily office hassles!
A bit controversial but having a mentor for an hour a month is a great way to take a break from the constant flow of emails, meetings, and other office demands. This is a good chance to take a break and put your mind into something else more stimulating!
Develop a reciprocating professional friendship
Your mentee will rise up the ranks and be successful. One day your mentee will be able to return the gift to you. In the great Bill Withers song "Lean On Me' the lyric goes.
Lean on me
When you're not strong
And I'll be your friend
I'll help you carry on...For it won't be long
Till I'm gonna need somebody to lean on
To get a mentor slot click here.
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