Digital Dealer - August 2017 - 7

on the last point, you
should begin your mentoring relationship with specific objectives in mind.
They can include: specific
things to learn, tasks to
master, habits to start or
break, attitude or integrity
areas to fine-tune, and
precise objectives to
accomplish. Define clear
targets up front, and realistic deadlines to work towards. Once this is done,
you have created clear
expectations for a return
on your investment, while
offering the mentee clear
growth objectives to work
towards, creating an
accountability benchmark
in the process.
5. PROVIDE
RESOURCES. You can't

just tell someone to run
a marathon and expect
them to be successful
if all they have ever
been trained to do is
run around the block.
Based on the specific
objectives you have
created, determine what
you must do to resource
the successful attainment
of the objectives you
have established: books,
online courses, seminars,
an outside coach, and
the like.

6. PROVIDE
EMPOWERMENT.

Equipping people and
then restraining them is
frustrating and wasteful.
Once you have set clear
objectives and trained the
mentee how to do what
is necessary to reach
them, you must give the

latitude and discretion
they need to apply what
they have learned. This
step may also include
you removing red tape
or other road blocks that
are potential minefields
on the path to success.
Frankly, if you are not
prepared to let go of
some authority and shift
it to the mentee so they
become less dependent
on you and more effective
in the process, you will
never grow people to
their potential. If it's a
matter of trust, then you
have obviously chosen
the wrong mentee. If,
on the other hand, it's a

you out of your zone,
but would increase the
mentee's capabilities and
make them more valuable
to the organization.
Start with one particular
task that doesn't bring a
high return for you and
perform the task with
the mentee, explaining
why you do it that way.
Encourage him or her to
find a better way to do it
as long as they achieve
the desired result, in the
desired time. Then have
them do the task while
you watch (an inventory,
interview, conducting a
meeting, etc. are some
possibilities), providing

once. You can't mentor
by memo, voicemail, or
e-mail. Those are supplements, and not substitutes for your personal
presence, engagement,
and impact.
9. TEACH THIS PROCESS TO THE MENTEE
SO THAT HE OR SHE
CAN PAY IT FORWARD.

This is where it really gets
good. Ideally, the mentee
will have someone in the
organization-a direct
report-they can implement the same mentoring
process with. As they
invest in others, they will
grow their own skills and
further add value to the

YOU CAN'T JUST TELL SOMEONE
TO RUN A MARATHON AND EXPECT
THEM TO BE SUCCESSFUL IF ALL
THEY HAVE EVER BEEN TRAINED TO
DO IS RUN AROUND THE BLOCK."
matter of your personal
insecurity that causes you
to hold your authority in a
death grip, you will need
to grow up emotionally so
both you and the mentee
can go up to higher levels
of effectiveness.
7. GIVE IT AWAY.

Building on the prior point
of providing empowerment and giving authority
away at the appropriate
time to a mentee, you
can also create a win/win
when you mentor someone in how to perform a
task you are currently doing. Ideally, this would be
in something that takes

feedback afterwards to
help them improve performance. Then, when you
feel they are ready, let go
and let them run with it.
8. BE AVAILABLE.

Mentors should meet
regularly with mentees to
accelerate coaching, determine additional needs
or challenges, gauge
progress, and continue
to build their relationship.
This is why an effective
mentor must be willing
to start investing greater amounts of time into
smaller groups of strategic people, and not take
on too many mentees at

organization by developing a deeper bench and
culture of growth.
DAVE ANDERSON is
President of LearnToLead,
which provides in-person
and virtual training to
many of the world's best
dealerships. Dave speaks to
dealer groups over 125 times
each year and has given
seminars in 15 countries.
He's written the leadership
column for Dealer magazine
for the past 15 years. Dave's
13th book, "It's Not Rocket
Science: 4 Simple Strategies
for Mastering the Art of
Execution" is now available
worldwide. For leadership
tips follow Dave on Twitter @
DaveAnderson100. EMAIL:
dave@learntolead.com

D I G I TA L D E A L E R . C O M

AUGUST 2017

7
http://www.DIGITALDEALER.COM
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Digital Dealer - August 2017
