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One of the most vital things I did when I decided to start my own collection agency was to get a mentor. Realizing that having a mentor is something that can help you appreciate the wisdom many more experienced colleagues can offer you. In my opinion, having a mentor to turn to for advice, help and to ask questions is a very effective means of transforming knowledge into wisdom. When you have a mentor, that will help you to accelerate your wisdom building process considering the mentor can help you by letting you learn from their mistakes.

Some tips when choosing a mentor:

• Choose someone who does not work with you, or that you don’t “report” to in any way.
• Research who you would like as a mentor and next ASK them before you decide, some folks may not want to be a mentor.

If you want to be a mentor here are some tips that can help you to be a more effective mentor:

• Be available for your mentoree, set up a undoubtful amount of date per week and even schedule the day so it is consistent.
• Make listening your priority, only speak once the mentoree has been able to ask you something or just vent about the industry.
• Keep all conversations confidential! Anything you and your mentoree discuss should be kept in
  the strictest confidence.
• Be blunt and to the point. Being direct is a huge “favor” you can do for your mentoree.
• Stop the relationship whether it is not working for you, whether you don’t feel like you are helping or whether you feel like you are being bothered, perhaps that isn’t for you.

Many society I talk to in the credit and collections industry say they don’t mentor considering they do not have any formal training as a mentor. Being a mentor doesn’t necessarily mean you need formal training, being a mentor is being someone who can help another person construct it in that industry. You can do that by listening, offering advice, answering questions, and it can be very minimal.

A mentor is someone who has an impact on someone else’s life through their deeds, actions and/or words. Mentoring provides motivation and support and can help influence a mentoree in many ways. Some mentors feel they never really did anything for their mentoree but the mentoree sees it much differently. They appreciate just having a sounding board or someone who is available that they can ask a question whether one comes up. It gives them a feeling of defense as they take leaps that scare them.

My tip for you: Find a mentor yourself and be one to someone else.

Orginal post by Michelle Dunn

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