University of Minnesota - UMN Executive Leadership Insights
The Mentee's Guide
Book

The Mentee's Guide

Making Mentoring Work for You

Lois J. Zachary and Lory Fischler
Jossey-Bass, 2009
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Editorial Rating

9

Qualities

  • Applicable
  • Well Structured
  • Engaging

Recommendation

Mentoring and leadership expert Lois J. Zachary presents a sensible approach to turning your mentoring relationship into career-enhancement gold. Zachary, writing with Lory A. Fischler, provides broad coverage, including preparing to be mentored, recruiting the right mentor, establishing the processes and goals of the mentoring relationship, setting a steady schedule, and wrapping up productively. Zachary describes how a mentee eventually can become a mentor and pass along the benefits of having career support from a senior executive.

Summary

The mentor-mentee relationship traces back to ancient Greece.

The concept of a mentor comes from Homer’s Odyssey. In this ancient Greek classic, Odysseus charges an older man named Mentor with safeguarding his son Telemachus while Odysseus is away fighting in the Trojan War.

Later, the Greek goddess Athena appears to Telemachus in the form of Mentor, that same old man, to help him locate his father. Thus, the Athena-turned-Mentor figure performed not only as a teacher and protector but also as a guide.

The modern idea of a mentor stems from this history: Mentors help their mentees clarify and pursue their goals. Mentors also introduce their mentees to relevant research, advanced information, useful contacts, and the knowledge and wisdom they need to fulfill their career objectives. 

Mentees metaphorically “sit at the foot of the master” to learn, but modern mentees are not passive. They engage actively in the mentoring process and reflect on what they’re learning along the way. Mentoring has seven aspects:  

  1. Reciprocity

About the Authors

Mentoring and leadership expert Lois J. Zachary is president of Leadership Development Services, a Phoenix consultancy where Lory A. Fischler is a senior associate and program-development specialist. They also wrote Starting Strong: A Mentoring Fable.

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