FONSKE'S APPROACH TO MENTORSHIP

Below is our club's approach to Mentorship. You can find a printable version here.
Feel free to contact our VP Membership if you have any questions.

THE BENEFITS OF HAVING A MENTOR

Mentors can help you:
  ▶ design your personal Toastmasters track, set goals & reach them.
  ▶ find your way around the meetings, supporting roles, EasySpeak, Pathways, etc.
  ▶ finetune the message, structure, delivery of your speeches & discuss leadership projects.
  ▶ integrate into the social fabric of the club.

All of this goes a lot faster when you have a mentor.

HOW TO FIND A MENTOR

You can:
  ▶ scan the club yourself, see if there is someone you’d like as a mentor and approach them.
  ▶ ask the VP Mentorship:
  ▶ who in the club is interested in being a mentor & approach them yourself.
  ▶ to recommend a mentor and help pair you up.

It is useful to let the VP Mentorship know which approach you prefer.

GETTING STARTED

Once you have a mentor, you should have an orientation interview with them to go over your Goal Setting Sheet. When you are aligned on your ‘why’s’ (Toastmasters) and ‘what’s’ (goals), the next step is to set some specific, short-term sub-goals (e.g. ‘complete 3 speeches’).
This will increase your accountability, your follow-through, give you momentum & set you on the right track towards your long-term goals.

FOLLOW-UP

Once you have completed your initial short-term goals, we recommend you sit together with your mentor again, evaluate your progress, see how the various projects contributed to achieving your goals and then simply repeat the process.

It is important to note that every mentee has their own needs, every mentor has their own expertise and that your goals & dynamics can and will change.
As such, it is not uncommon for people to have more than 1 mentor and for people to switch around – both mentors and mentees. This is perfectly normal, and both mentee and mentor should feel comfortable to discuss this at any time. Both mentor and mentee can contact the VP Mentorship at any time when questions arise.

CONTACT

Depending on your schedules, you can connect with your mentor:
  ▶ via e-mail.
  ▶ on the phone.   
  ▶ by video conferencing.
  ▶ by meeting up in person.
The closer the contact, the better the experience, the better the results.

THE BENEFITS OF BEING A MENTOR

As a mentor you can:
  ▶ train your teaching skills by finding the best approach to transfer knowledge to different people.
  ▶ reinforce the knowledge you’ve acquired & gain new insights from working closely together with someone who can benefit from your expertise.
  ▶ hone your leadership, coaching & motivational skills by helping another person set goals, overcome challenges & reach those goals.

CLUB EXPECTATIONS

As mentor, you play a crucial role in shaping a new member’s experience. It is important you:
  ▶ help your mentee find the answers to any question he or she might have.
  ▶ give your mentee constructive, actionable feedback.
  ▶ invite your mentee to interesting events & motivate them to attend.
  ▶ attend workshops & coaching sessions to improve your own coaching & mentoring skills.