Working with rookies has many benefits, says Keir Clark, branch manager and senior investment advisor with ScotiaMcLeod Inc. in Fredericton. A rookie can help you gain new ideas and a fresh perspective on the business — and could even become a potential successor for your practice.
Clark, who has 15 years’ experience working with rookies, offers these tips on being a good mentor:
> Share your experiences
Give rookies some understanding of the business by telling them what you have learned in the industry.
Talk to the rookie about what has worked for your business and what hasn’t, Clark says. Give specific examples to make your lessons more memorable.
> Give it to them straight
Be realistic about what rookies can expect from the industry and from their future businesses.
“As a mentor you need to be honest,” Clark says.
Helping rookies develop a realistic approach to business the will help them achieve success.
They should aim high, but not too high. Discourage your protégé from setting goals that are unreasonably ambitious and too difficult to achieve, Clark says. At the same time, don’t let them set goals that will be too easy to accomplish.
Work with the rookie to help him or her set appropriate goals and create a plan to achieve them.
> Listen
To help a rookie start down the right road, you will need to pay attention to what he or she is saying.
It is not enough to just sit through a session with a rookie, Clark says. You need to be engaged and recognize the rookie’s successes and work through any challenges.
> Keep work responsibilities distinct
Be careful not to let your mentoring activities result in your taking on more work than you bargained for.
Some rookies may try to delegate certain tasks, Clark says, which could result in you doing work, such as research, that the rookie should be doing.
Make sure you set clear boundaries and limit your activities to assisting rookies, rather than doing their work. Let the protégé take some responsibility and learn by making mistakes.