The idea of mentoring is ancient. People have always sought advice about their careers from the more ‘experienced’ lot. Perhaps, the branding came about much later, once the services sector took off and career growths ceased to be linear
The idea of mentoring is ancient. People have always sought advice about their careers from the more ‘experienced’ lot. Perhaps, the branding came about much later, once the services sector took off and career growths ceased to be linear
Seniority is not automatically rewarded as it was earlier, and the safety net that employment once provided vis-à-vis business ventures, has been cast away. Unpredictability is for real and it’s here to stay.
A career on an average, spans across three or four decades. In the midst of great uncertainty, the only real cushion is a high degree of learnability and periodic skills upgradation. But, in an age ridden with information overload, one is never certain about relevance. Dispassionately and without bias, who can tell me if I still count? At times, people may even need help to negotiate around office politics, masqueradin gunder the garb of ‘organisational culture’.
The Shakti Leadership
Women, do take career breaks in order to raise children. When they come back, it’s not always easy to pick up the threads and carry on. More so to take it graciously that contemporaries may have moved on and up the proverbial ladder. This is also compounded by diversity related challenges that most women have to deal with.
Reverse mentoring is much in vogue today. Often, the older generation of employees may require help in tech adoption, and young people usually tech-savvy -are only too willing to oblige. It’s also a great way to bridge generational gaps.
Tech startups in particular, seek mentorship quite extensively. And not least due to the fact that young founders may know very little about other aspects of business, besides technology. For instance, they may require guidance in legal matters and compliance issues. This lot has a tendency to fall in love with their products and miss the forest for the trees. They have to be reminded in as many words about commercial viability, time to market and other ponderable conditions.
A mentor is really a cross between a teacher and a friend who is willing to listen and offer valuable advice without fear of reprisal. We all need assistance at some point in our lives but are we humble enough to admit it? A false sense of pride and pretense may leave us exposed which can do unimaginable damage to our careers.
Raising a toast to collaborative way of working.
This opinion piece was first published in the print version of SUBURB September 2019 issue.