Transcript Slide 1

Mentoring: Becoming One to Find
One or, Finding One to Become One
Gregory L. Kearns, Pharm.D., Ph.D.
Chairman, Department of Medical Research
Associate Chairman, Department of Pediatrics
Director, Pediatric Pharmacology Research Unit
Dr. Samuel Lux on Receiving the ASH Mentor
Award……
What does this award mean to you?
This award means more to me than any other I’ve received.
(It) reflects not only my success, but the success of the
many men and women I’ve had the chance to work with over
my career……
That’s the unique joy of mentoring. You gain pleasure from
the success of others…..
You can recognize the successful mentor because
they can’t help bragging about their proteges.
Dr. Samuel Lux on Receiving the ASH Mentor
Award……
How important is mentoring for trainees?
I think it is vital. I suppose it’s possible to forge a successful
career on your own but it is surely harder, and I would bet
less fun.
Most of us owe a large measure of our success to the efforts
of others. Certainly, I do.
My success is due in large measure to (my mentor’s)
unflagging attention to my career.
What the mentee initially expects….
• To be told…
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Where to be
When to be where
What to do
How to do it
How to act
How to talk
What to think
How to succeed
What the (inexperienced) mentor first
expects from his/her mentee……
• Superior intellect
• Well developed sense of
self
• Maturity (personal and
professional)
• Excellent communication
skills
• Self-determination
• Self-direction
• Synthetic reasoning
• Pre-identified career goals
The mentor should be able to….
• Manage learning experiences in the workplace for the
mentee
• Manage the development of the relationship with the
mentee
• Recognize and assist with appropriate learning
strategies for the individual workplace and mentee
• Facilitate learning
• Invest time and effort in the mentee and program
• Maintain regular contact with the mentee
Mentors should also
know..
• Different learning processes
that a learner may use
• How workplace environments
affect learning
• How mentoring can affect
workplace learning
• Guided learning strategies
and techniques
• Good communication skills
• Good counseling skills
• Outcomes expected of the
mentee in a learning program
• Subject matter expertise
• The value of sensitivity
A great mentor
is…..
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Advocate
Coach
Teacher
Guide
Role Model
Valued friend
Door opener
Benevolent authority
Available Resource
Cheerful critic
Career enthusiast
Characteristics of a
Good Protégé….
• Be self-motivated
• Be pliable in your
thinking
• Exhibit a desire to learn
and develop
• Be a team player and
recognize that there is
not an “I” in TEAM
• Be dedicated to
developing
communication skills
• Let your actions model
the success you aspire to
Roles and Responsibilities
of the Protégé…
• Identifying and assessing priorities
and mentoring expectations
• Doing a self-assessment of skills
they have and the ones they desire
• Clarifying and defining goals that
are realistic and challenging
• Developing a mutually approved
agreement on expectations
• Being open and receptive to
guidance and coaching
• Being honest with the mentor
• Keeping the mentor informed of
changes in needs/expectations
• Accepting the reality that needs and
expectations change with growth
• Accept accountability and
responsibility for actions
Mentor Selection –
Multiple Choices….
• Accomplishment vs.
Acclaim
• Expertise vs. Experience
• Personality vs. Persona
• Respected vs. Respectable
• Evidence of –
IT’S A DIFFICULT BUT CRITICAL
CHOICE
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A learned teacher
An active learner
A doer
An excellent communicator
Effective leadership
Scholarly productivity
Uncompromised integrity
Dr. Samuel Lux on Receiving the ASH Mentor
Award……
What advice would you give others about mentoring?
First, be a friend and an interested colleague of your
mentees – someone they can come to whenever they
do something interesting.
Second, focus on their strengths – emphasize those in
career choices. Make them shoot high and do high quality
work, but be a cheerful and constructive critic.
Third, be their advocate in getting important trips, talks,
session chairmanships, and the other little plums of
academic life.
Dr. Samuel Lux on Receiving the ASH Mentor
Award……
What advice would you give others about mentoring?
Fourth, protect their time but make sure they take on
responsibilities that are necessary for the careers they
desire.
Fifth, don’t try to make them a clone of yourself. This is,
I think, one of the biggest mistakes.
Sixth, stick with them. Being a mentor is a lifetime
responsibility, even after they move on to other
institutions.
Mentoring requires..
• Mutual trust, developed
as a result of mutual
respect
• Commitment to growth
and discovery through
support and challenge
• Openness to give and
receive help and
feedback
• Commitment to action
and results, the ability to
make it happen
What’s in it for the
mentor?
• Enhanced self esteem
• Enhanced status in the
organization
• Career advancement
• Job enrichment
• Motivation
• Recognition as a developer of
people
• Re-kindled interest and
motivation in work
• Close relationship with the
mentee
• Own developmental needs
met
• Extra resource (the mentee)
For it to work………
The mentor and mentee must both work at it!
Never, never, never, never
give up.
Winston Churchill