Colonel Candid

  Today is a day to encourage interactive dialogs and display the benefits of being a mentor and being mentored. National Mentoring Day started in 2014 with a key message to raise awareness of the invaluable and rewarding contributions that mentor makes to their recipient’s life. For those looking for a mentor, continue searching because mentors enable their mentees to achieve higher compensation, faster salary growth, increased promotions, increased job satisfaction and greater commitment to the organization. To the multitude of mentors recognized on this day, the benefits of mentoring are numerous. Mentors often have higher job satisfaction, stronger personal relationships, loyalty of supporters, and mentoring others allows for one’s own growth.   Both Anthony Tjan and Dr. Joyce Russell provide the following guidelines to becoming a better mentor.  Put the relationship first. Set realistic expectations and goals in the mentorship relationship. Create short wins a...

Photo by  Christina @ wocintechchat.com  on  Unsplash The Mentorship Blueprint Mentorship is not a foreign concept to those who succeed in national security career fields. Most people understand mentorship is important, and they likely have several types of mentors on whom they can count. To establish this lasting relationship requires an individualized approach because each relationship is unique. What is required to create a unique relationship is not foreign, and this document serves to outline the best method to map out mentorship approaches and goals. Tried and true methods are gathered here to guide and develop the mentorship relationship, to help ensure it remains on course and productive with both quantitative and qualitative results.   Mentorship relationships begin with a sharing the mentor’s experience, a long iterative phase of discovery and development, and lastly, a mentee’s expansion in talents and skills. Following this blueprint, a men...

Recently, I discovered some true strengths of co-workers and mentors that reminded me of one of the greatest strengths a mentor can display, empathy. There were several people who demonstrated and understood the challenge I was going through as my mother-in-law had passed away. Often empathy is confused with sympathy. Sympathy is a feeling of concern and sense that something could make someone happier, but it doesn’t go so far as to attempt to share in the other person’s perspective. According to psychologist Daniel Goleman, empathy, is a vital supplier to develop emotional intelligence, a key skill needed as a mentor.  Colonel Candid presents you with three components of empathy for you to consider the next time your mentee comes to you with a problem or situation requiring empathy. The first is cognitive empathy, this is the understanding of what the person is likely feeling or thinking. Although you’re not emotionally engaged, you can still use this to help you underst...

Here you are ready to hike up over that mountain in front of you. All your training is now put to the test. Taking up this challenge, you’ve got your mind ready too. It’s “go” day and as you launch, I’d like to provide you with some additional goodness to take along. First, surround yourself with “CAN” people. As you start with fresh legs, most people, optimistically, are fearless. That’s the fun of starting out and it’s also the time to grab a hand of another to keep up along with you. Your excitement will be infectious. Keep climbing and encouraging others. Here you are getting to the steeper and steeper parts. You’re now seeing this for how hard it really it really is and your feet are beginning to hurt. That small voice in your head is starting to ask yourself over and over again “why are you doing this?” Here’s a great example of why it’s so important to remain surrounded by people who can lift you up when you need it and most importantly you can do the same for them....