Establishing Clear Expectations

Quick reference

• 00:04 Hello again.
• 00:05 Welcome to this lesson on establishing clear expectations in a mentoring
• 00:09 relationship.
• 00:10 As the last lesson was all about finding the right partner,
• 00:14 this one is about starting off right.
• 00:17 We mentioned this at the end of the last lesson, but
• 00:20 we have to highlight the importance of goal-setting.
• 00:23 Mentors and mentees should both understand and
• 00:26 communicate their overall goals for the mentoring relationship.
• 00:32 In doing so, they can work together to identify smaller
• 00:35 immediate goals that would help support the bigger ones.
• 00:38 For example, a mentees ultimate goal may be to become a project manager.
• 00:44 Hearing this a mentor might suggest an important smaller step
• 00:48 would be learning how to manage small teams through side projects.
• 00:52 So it would be up to the mentor to provide those opportunities
• 00:57 based on this clarified goals.
• 01:00 Now once you are overarching goals are communicated, you need to
• 01:04 layout the role and responsibilities of the mentor and the mentee.
• 01:09 This involves understanding what each party expects from each other and
• 01:13 what they need to commit to within the relationship.
• 01:16 As a mentor, it's your responsibility to provide guidance,
• 01:20 share your knowledge, and be available for your mentees' questions or concerns.
• 01:25 Mentees, on the other hand, should be proactive in seeking help,
• 01:30 take initiative in learning, and be open to feedback.
• 01:34 For example, one of my first mentors would review my work that I did on projects and
• 01:40 then offer advice for improvements before the projects were finalized.
• 01:45 This was a great help to me.
• 01:47 And years later, once I was more experienced,
• 01:50 I served in the opposite role, offering a new mentee of mine my advice,
• 01:55 and I would give them feedback on their projects.
• 01:59 Clear communication between the mentor and
• 02:02 the mentee is a cornerstone of a successful mentoring relationship.
• 02:07 Both parties must agree on the frequency and the type of communication.
• 02:12 Will you catch up weekly over coffee or have a dedicated monthly video call?
• 02:18 Are in-between communications done through email or
• 02:22 do you prefer quick messages on a chat platform?
• 02:25 Having these details sorted will help ensure that everyone knows
• 02:29 what to expect and help avoid misunderstandings.
• 02:33 But both parties need to be flexible because you need to remember
• 02:38 the mentoring relationship can often be secondary to those
• 02:42 everyday work responsibilities you all ready have.
• 02:46 Here's a good example.
• 02:48 A friend of mine had a senior executive as a mentor, and they became good friends,
• 02:53 agreeing that they would meet up in person for a half hour every week.
• 02:58 It's very ambitious, but the executive was so busy and traveled quite a bit.
• 03:04 And the mentee, they had a lot of project meetings of their own that really
• 03:09 took over her calendar.
• 03:11 So over time, as they kept missing their mentoring meetings,
• 03:16 they both realized a better way to communicate was virtually and
• 03:21 closer to once a month for roughly an hour at a time.
• 03:25 Now, both of them were committed to the relationship.
• 03:27 So instead of abandoning it when things got in the way,
• 03:31 they found an alternative that ultimately worked for both of them.
• 03:37 In the next lesson, we'll dive into the essential mentoring skills,
• 03:41 starting with active listening.
• 03:44 Stay tuned.

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