Have you found a mentor or even a mentee you would like to help, but you don't know where to start? 🧐 

In this 'MentoringTools', we share with you some tips to make your mentoring relationship work! 💡

👋 Tip 1
Get in touch

The first tip we can pass on to you is to start your mentoring, with a simple and authentic presentation of yourself: who are you as a person? what do you expect from the mentoring relationship? what can you bring to the other person? (We can give you some 'icebreaker' ideas, in order to get to know each other in a fun and informal way, here is an example of a 'portrait chinois' that can be used below):

More icebreaker resources here

⌚ Tip 2
Exchange regularly

As Yvan Krylov says so well: 'He who gives in time gives twice.' As you can see, our second tip is related to time. Both mentors and mentees have little time and it is sometimes difficult to be fully present and available. Nevertheless, it is essential to set up regular exchange times, we encourage you to have at least 1 exchange per month with your mentor or mentee, depending on the form that suits you best (text conversations, video conference or phone call). This will allow you to stay in touch and encourage the evolution of the mentoring relationship.

🎯 Tip 3
Define your goals

Having one or more goals in mind for your mentoring relationship is an essential step. We recommend setting a clear and concise goal that you can state at the beginning of the mentoring relationship. The more clearly defined a goal is the easier it will be to achieve.

🤝 Tip 4
Prepare for each meeting

In order to have quality exchanges and to bring out concrete elements following your exchanges, we advise you to prepare at least your meetings. For example, you can write down on a piece of paper: your thoughts, your questions, your difficulties or even the points of progress and success. It is important to always have at least one or two things in mind to express to allow the other person to bounce back on them, and thus to make the mentoring relationship and the different situations evolve. You can also warn your mentor or mentee of the points you would like to address before your exchange and meeting times.

📅 Tip 5
Set up a next meeting

At the end of each exchange or meeting, we recommend that you set a date and determine the modality of your next exchange time. This will also help maintain a regular mentoring relationship over time. 

📞 Tip 6
Determine your communication tools

To exchange, different means are possible: chat, video conference, phone call, message on the answering machine, etc. We encourage you and your mentor or mentee to define the use of each means of communication for your mentoring relationship. Some examples of uses depending on the communication method used are: using chat to conduct an interim follow-up; asking/answering immediate questions quickly. Video conferencing can be used for monthly exchange times for example.

💬 If you have other tips, 
please feel free to share them with the community in the  comments area below.