Developing a culture of mentoring is absolutely essential to all areas of society; Family life, with our children, in small businesses, and throughout large multinational organisations. This is our aim at Lighthouse International…
How do I know whether to trust a mentorship coach? By Paul Waugh, Lighthouse Head Mentor
1. In What Areas Can You Benefit Through Mentoring & Coaching?
Develop Your Confidence & Self-Discipline
Rapidly Progress In or Change Your Career
Start or Grow Your Business
Develop As An Executive & Leader
Build Highly Effective Teams
Become a Better Parent
Mentor Young People
Build Better Personal Relationships
Check out our blog to read more about those we have helped through mentoring
2. What is the Difference Between Mentoring (Wisdom) & Coaching (Cleverness)?
It’s understandable that you might think mentoring and coaching are similar or even the same practice with a different title. After all, both involve one or more people helping another person become the best they can be. But they’re not the same at all.
Both warrant serious consideration in our lives, businesses and careers. Mentoring & Coaching require committed and positive action if we are to optimise our lives and those in it. They work together but in order of process; mentorship first, then coaching. Mentorship flows into coaching.
Below are the four differences from the last 17 years of research with 40,000 people in the difference between mentoring and coaching
Coaching is Task-Oriented
The focus is on tangible issues relating to hard skills, such as managing more effectively and efficiently, speaking with greater clarity and articulation, as well as learning how to think in a strategic way. This calls for a skills development professional (coach) who is proficient at teaching a skill set to the coachee on how to develop and be competent at the skill at hand.
Coaching Tends to be Short-Term
Coaching is often just on a short term basis. It’s on an “as much as is needed” format. Once a skill is learned then the coachee moves on to the next skill perhaps with another coach. At LIG we have successfully brought together the long-term self-leadership top-line elements like mentoring, with the shorter-term bottom line management and skill-based coaching.
This forms a seamless Mentorship Coaching process.
Coaching is Measured & Driven by Performance
Mentoring is driven and measured by the development and transformation of the person. Its aim is to develop the person for both short and longer-term goals. Mentoring often leads to wonderful, meaningful and purposeful long-term relationships that coaching, by the nature of it, rarely does.
Coaching is More About the Skill Than the Person
Coaching does not need as much thought and planning behind it as mentoring does. It is less about the person and personality, and more about the skill.
Coaching can be done almost on the spot without any thought for the person at all, except what is relative to the skill to be coached.
Mentoring has a longer, more meaningful and purposeful lead time and process.
When Coaching is preceded by Mentorship, it takes coaching and skill learning to almost unbelievable levels. It shortens the training period considerably and increases the learning and proficiency many times over.
We believe that armed with the understanding of the differences between Mentorship and Coaching even at this basic level, you will get more out of our work at Lighthouse International Group and will be able to use it both as an inspiration and a catalyst to greater and greater achievement in your life.
3. How Does Mentoring Compare?
The focus is on transformational issues that are often less tangible issues, like how to deal with criticism or how to focus, or how to be motivated when times are hard. How to deal with problems and challenges relating to achieving a result through and with people. It has more to do with the top line (leadership) rather than bottom line (management) of our lives, business and/or career.
Mentoring is about relationships
Mentoring is based on sound relationships. Its aim is to provide a trust-filled environment where the Mentee shares his or her professional and personal challenges and obstacles to success.
Self-leadership along with trusting relationships is what is at the core of Mentorship; helping the Mentee with the right personal and interpersonal skills necessary to be able to apply their harder skill set, like management and technical skills with greater leadership and direction.
Mentoring is leadership, Coaching is management
Top line (leadership) always precedes bottom line (management) – both are important to the Mentor and Mentee. If you have a bottom line life problem like procrastination, or being in too much debt, or not making enough money then your top line leadership issues are where you need to go to start leading yourself out of that problem process.
This is what Mentorship is all about; taking the lead in your life, career and business so that the bottom line (coaching/management) can be dealt with in a powerful and optimal way, thereby not only solving the problem but succeeding to optimal levels beyond merely solving it just to survive.
This is why Lighthouse International, as a direct result of years of active research with people in real life situations, advocate neither just Mentorship or just Coaching but rather both together; we call it Mentorship Coaching – bringing life and business/career leadership aspects (top line) together in order to flow down effectively to the management aspects (bottom line). We have had enormous success with it.
4. Have You Ever Considered Becoming a Mentor?
Lighthouse International is now expanding at a rapid rate both nationally and internationally. As mentorship plays a crucial part at the centre of everything we do, we are on the look-out for people who want to train to become a mentor. We’re looking for people who really care about helping others and who’d like to explore building their lives as a mentorship coach.
Learning to mentor is a critical skill that is essential for anyone who wishes to develop themselves in any role relating to people. Mentoring others helps to:
Learn fundamental skills in relation to helping others be and do things more effectively
Habitualise in ourselves what we teach others – Helping others to learn actually helps us to learn better too. If you help someone learn something, you expand your own awareness and understanding of the same thing.
Cultivates a culture of trust and cohesion, rather than fear, disrespect and backstabbing in the workplace.
To advance in a career we must be able to manage and lead others well. To do that successfully we must know how to guidance them well.
5. Would You Like to Learn More About Receiving Mentorship?
We know that mentorship isn’t for everyone even if it is sorely needed. While we would love to help everyone we know that those who are genuinely hungry to progress in their lives, careers or businesses will get the most out of it. We must make sure that you are right, ready to be mentored and that we understand your unique aspirations, passions, strengths, and challenges to ensure we get you started on the best, tailored mentorship development program. All of our experienced mentors are not only mentored themselves but began their journey with being mentored – so they are well placed to guide you through this journey.
Pricing is tailored to your requirements and unique circumstances but expect a range of between £50-75 an hour.
Here’s a short video on the traits needed to benefit most from mentoring…