This Is HOW We Do It
In a series on mentorship, you should not expect a prescriptive message like Montell Jordan’s hit song. But for a few brief general rules, examples illustrate the practices you can apply to your mentor relationships.
No Answers Here
Mentors should spend far more time listening and resist the temptation to show their intellectual prowess through a brilliant proclamation. Most frequently, an answer is unnecessary, or the mentee’s question does not address the correct issue. To complement their listening, effective mentors employ the Socratic Method, asking questions to stimulate critical thinking and leading the mentee to formulate the solution.
Already Answered
A mentee who leads a consulting firm previously told me one of his requirements is alignment with the client on their objectives and methods. He had learned that a lack of alignment spelled doom to other engagements, no matter how lucrative.
Today, he wanted some advice on his largest engagement. A client hired him to cure organizational dysfunction and establish programs to increase her team’s efficiency. The client professed a commitment to the new programs, but consistently undermined their implementation. I asked a few questions about his communication with the client regarding the programs’ goals, to solicit support, periodic status reviews, etc. He had done all these things and more to no avail.
I then asked if he needed anything more to resolve the issue than adhering to his initial requirement. He frustratingly said, “I knew you were going to use my words against me!” We chuckled that he didn’t need any advice other than to remember to listen to himself.
Another mentee excitedly told me about a new business opportunity. A year ago, he developed a list of criteria to evaluate professional opportunities. I asked if he had changed his mind about his requirements, and he replied that he found no reason to change them.
I then asked if the venture met the criteria (a rhetorical question, as it did not). He sheepishly replied, “I knew you would do this to me; OK, I will shut up about it!” In this case, he needed an accountability partner to help him adhere to his standards and avoid distraction from the shiny object.
Really?
Another mentee, who pursues multiple professional endeavors, wanted my opinion as a lawyer and CPA on adding more residential rental properties to his portfolio; he has owned two houses since 2022. Our interaction:
Q: Does your city have a good market for rental properties? A: Yes, it is a bedroom community with a growing population in need of single-family rentals, and other investors operate successfully in the area.
Q: How much time do you spend searching for properties, and how many offers have you submitted in the past year? A: I spend several hours every week reviewing listings, but have not made an offer in three years.
Q: How much time do similarly situated successful investors spend searching, and how many bids do they make in a year? A: I suspect they invest many more hours than I do, and bid on multiple houses every year.
Q: If you are not doing what others do, are you genuinely interested? Are you lazy, or are your other endeavors more rewarding financially or emotionally? We followed with a discussion on how to determine the answers.
This situation is an example of the initial question not addressing the correct issue. The issue was not if real estate investing is worthwhile (the market indicates it is), but if it was the path he wanted to pursue (his actions indicating otherwise).
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A mentor is not simply the annoying little child who repeatedly asks, “Why?” There is a method to the madness; the questioning process not only resolves the current issue, but also provides the mentee a thought process for future use.
