Mentoring Future Leaders
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<strong>Mentoring</strong> <strong>Future</strong> <strong>Leaders</strong><br />
Step 5: Strategise, Observe, Take Action <strong> </strong><br />
and Give Feedback<br />
“We have to understand that the world can only be grasped by action,<br />
not by contemplation. The hand is more important than the eye … The<br />
hand is the cutting edge of the mind.”<br />
What represents good feedback?<br />
© Learning Link International<strong> </strong><br />
April 2005<br />
(Jacob Bronowski)<br />
Feedback is a vital part of the learning process. It enables mentees to get<br />
quality information about their progress, thus enabling them to adjust and<br />
improve. The following are a few reminders:<br />
• Focus on the behaviour not the person.<br />
• Focus on observation rather than inference, intuition or guesses.<br />
• Focus on description rather than judgement.<br />
• Be specific rather than general<br />
• Balance negative with positive.<br />
• Create opportunities for structured<br />
reflection<br />
• Gather critical incidents (preferably first<br />
hand observation)<br />
• Be specific<br />
• Give examples (with permission)<br />
• Probe for reasons in areas <strong> </strong><br />
of improvement<br />
• Get permission to speak to a mix of people<br />
in mentee’s immediate network, or to send them a questionnaire<br />
about the mentee.<br />
• Give feedback with empathy – elicit a response to the feedback<br />
– expect possible defensiveness.<br />
• Stimulate insight and willingness to take action.<br />
• Highlight both strengths and development areas.<br />
Module 5 - The <strong>Mentoring</strong> Process Page ! 1