Discover, Dream, & Design
We often default to negative thinking. “What’s wrong?” “How can we fix this problem?” Stop thinking in terms of deficit, and instead focus on discovery, dream, and design.
We often default to negative thinking. “What’s wrong?” “How can we fix this problem?” Stop thinking in terms of deficit, and instead focus on discovery, dream, and design.
In American workplaces, this is particularly acute. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2000, 3.3% of all workers worked remotely. Today, that number is up to 5.2% — this is a jump from 3.7 million workers to 6.5 million workers. This trend looks as if it will continue : 90% of remote workers say they intend to work remotely for the rest of their careers.
With all the advantages of remote work in flexibility, the disadvantage is a workforce that might not ever interact in person. 21% of remote workers say that the biggest struggle of working remotely is loneliness, while another 21% said that it was collaborating and communicating. This is what Putnam described as the loss of social capital.
Yet these trends do not mean that workplaces must throw up their hands and assume that an engaged workforce and an inclusive organizational culture are futile efforts. Rather, it is more important than ever to create a work environment that builds social capital.
Social capital is most simply defined as the benefits of sociability. It is the productive outcome that arises from connectedness. It comes from meaningful relationships in the workplace where employees feel invested, think about each other, and engage in reciprocal acts of mutual benefit—it creates a sense of belonging.
Mentoring is often overlooked as a means to build social capital; though, by its very nature, mentoring is a reciprocal relationship where mentor and mentee collaborate towards a common goal that will build the mentees’ skills, knowledge, and abilities.
When an organization invests in mentoring, it nurtures four characteristics that grow social capital: conversation, connection, community, and culture. Let’s take a deeper look into each of these characteristics and how mentoring fosters growth in each.
Good mentoring begets good conversation, which is marked by the presence of dialogue. Unlike the transactional conversations that more typically occur in workplace relationships, dialogue is a rich interaction in which both parties are fully present and learning. There is deep listening, a collaboration on problem-solving, and a mutual investment in achieving a goal. Good conversations contain an element of trust and learning.Here’s how to create better conversation in your mentoring relationships:
We know that one of the most important factors that determines whether someone is engaged at work is whether they have a meaningful relationship in the workplace. One of the byproducts of good mentoring is enhanced engagement through connection with another individual, often someone with whom a relationship might not have been formed more organically. Through these connections, mentor and mentee gain broader perspective within an organization.
One mentor I interviewed—a very senior level executive—told me that his mentoring relationship helped him see how some of the rules and procedures within his mentee’s department could be improved—and he was then able to effect some changes. We often hear from mentees that they learn about additional possible career opportunities and make valuable connections through their mentors’ networks.
Here are three things you can do to create more meaningful connections in your mentoring relationships:
Social capital derives from a sense of belonging. Mentors and mentees don’t just feel more connected to each other, they feel more connected to their organizations. Research shows that mentorship increases results in better organizational citizenship— creating a better sense of community. When organizations invest in mentoring training, they are creating a cohort of mentors and mentees which further enhances a sense of belonging.
This is particularly palpable in large global organizations, or organizations with a remote or distributed workforce. Because effective mentoring requires relationship-building and because it can be conducted using video technology, it is also a way to boost engagement and create a sense of belonging and accountability.
Here are a few ways organizations can build community around mentoring.
A mentoring culture is a network of good conversations, multiple connections, and community around learning. Mentoring is embedded in the fabric of the organization, and employees at all levels understand that development is a priority and a value.
Here are some steps you can take to build a mentoring culture:
Social capital remains an essential ingredient of healthy workplaces, despite remote work increasing in prevalence. Social capital is not at risk of being eroded in its entirety; however, it is a continual pulse-point issue. Leveraging mentoring to nurture the 4Cs—conversation, connection, community, and culture—can create an increased sense of belonging in employees, thus building social capital.
About the author: Lisa Fain is the CEO of the Center for Mentoring Excellence and a global speaker on the intersection of mentoring and inclusion. Lisa is also an executive coach and a former management-side employment attorney. Her passion for diversity and inclusion work fuels her strong conviction that leveraging differences creates a better workplace and drives better business results. She is the author of the book Bridging Differences for Better Mentoring.
By The New York Times Kristin Wong June 12, 2018
Impostor syndrome is not a unique feeling, but some researchers believe it hits minority groups harder.
Last May, I walked into a room of impeccably dressed journalists at a media event in Los Angeles. I tugged on my pilly cardigan and patted down my frizzy bangs.
When a waiter presented a tray of sliced cucumbers and prosciutto and asked, “Crudité?” I resisted the temptation to shove three of them into my mouth and instead smiled and replied, “No, thank you.” I was focused on the task at hand: pretending not to be a fraud among this crowd of professionals.
Ironically, I was at the event to interview someone about impostor syndrome.
The psychologists Pauline R. Clance and Suzanne A. Imes coined the term in 1978, describing it as “internal experience of intellectual phoniness in people who believe that they are not intelligent, capable or creative despite evidence of high achievement.” In other words, it’s that sinking sense that you are a fraud in your industry, role or position, regardless of your credibility, authority or accomplishments.
This is not a unique feeling, and it hits many of us at some point in our lives. But some researchers believe it hits minority groups harder, as a lack of representation can make minorities feel like outsiders, and discrimination creates even more stress and anxiety when coupled with impostorism, according to Kevin Cokley, a professor of educational psychology and African diaspora studies at the University of Texas at Austin.
Read the full article here.
Posted by: Rick Turoczy (Originally published at siliconflorist.com on July 3, 2012)
Around the time PIE was starting the accelerator phase of this ongoing experiment, David Cohen, cofounder of TechStars, shared the TechStars Mentor Manifesto. And it served as an inspiration for me. A post by Micah Baldwin, a former TechStars mentor, provided a similar nudge for me.
I’m often reminded to go back and reread both of these posts and am inspired, again and again. So I thought I’d take the opportunity to augment the PIE mentor guidance a bit with some things that we’ve learned from observing PIE startups and mentors over the years.
We shared these tips with the PIE mentors and a few of them suggested we turn it into a blog post for the broader mentor community.
So we took that mentoring to heart.
If you’re thinking about becoming a mentor for startups — either in a formal accelerator program or independently — here are some tips for thinking about how to work with entrepreneurs.
Read on here for 10 tips for mentoring startups.
By Paula Pant Posted: 10/16/14 Updated: 11/10/17
In addition to helping large Fortune 500 companies, #mentoring is beneficial to small businesses as well. For Entrepreneurs, There Are Some Questions You Just Can’t Research Online
You’d love to become your own boss. You’ve always dreamed of starting a cake business, running your own car dealership, or launching a consulting practice.
Lately, that dream has morphed into a plan. You’ve built some savings. You’ve carved out a home office. You have approval from your spouse.
But there’s one incredibly important piece of the puzzle that you may be lacking: a mentor.
Why a Mentor?
You can read all the books about writing business plans, managing self-employment taxes and filing LLC paperwork. You can study the biographies of the leaders in your field. But unless you have a trustworthy person who can provide direct feedback that’s unique to your situation, you won’t be able to improve as quickly or as well.
Mentoring is essential in any field. If you’re a software programmer, meet with your mentor monthly to ask whether you should stick with JavaScript or learn Ruby on Rails. If you’re a professional writer, send your mentor one article per month and ask for feedback on style and tone. If you flip houses, show your mentor your operating budget and request advice on how to manage contractors.
So where can you find a mentor? To read the rest of this article click here.
You’ve come so far in your mentor/mentee relationship! Take a breath and take a look at all you’ve accomplished over the past 12 months.
Do you remember where you began a year ago? What was the quality and tone of that relationship then? What were your goals and visions?
Where are you now…and even more exciting, Where are you headed for the next 12 months?
Next month we begin a whole new series of tips! So, dream, journal and wonder at your next level…and stay tuned for more.