EDUCATIONAL FORUM

" The time for action is now. It's never too late to do something."

March 2009

Mentoring-What is Mentoring?

Being a mentor is probably the most life changing experience you can have in toastmasters.  To begin your mentoring experience start by mentoring a new club member through their first three or four speeches.  Here's all you have to do, find out what your mentee wants to accomplish as a toastmaster, exchange phone numbers and e-mail addresses.  Let your mentee know when the best time is to get a hold of you.  Maybe you want to meet in person or over the phone.  Your job is to listen and give advise that will help them to have a fantastic toastmaster experience.

Your responsibility is to get your mentee to give speeches.  Remember, you will never get them to reach perfection before they give their speech.  This will happen with their speech giving experience at the club.  Your are there to be their cheerleader and supportor.

This mentor/mentee relationship can become a life long friendship.  You never know when you begin being a mentor what the outcome will be for the person you are mentoring, that person might become the World Champion of Public Speaking or the President of Toastmasters International.

As your toastmaster experience grows so does your mentoring experience.  You may find your mentee asking questions about toastmaster leadership, have yourself been a club officer, area governor or division governor, you are now able to help them navigate their way to a great leadership experience.

To me nothing can be more satisfying as a mentor than when your mentee goes far beyond and exceeds your own skill and ability.  Sometimes being a king maker is better than being the king.

Al Gramando DTM

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