Practice owners should focus on making mentoring of their planners, paraplanners and support staff a major commitment for 2021 and correctly undertaken mentoring can benefit the individual mentees, mentors as well as the practice itself, according to Australian Wealth Solutions.
However, in order to be successful, mentoring should take a genuine interest in each and every member of the team and should deepen the personal relationship with each team member by grasping their goals and aspirations.
“Once there is rapport, the next step is acknowledging their strengths and suggest steps for growth that are in keeping with personal interests and professional/career goals,” AWS’ principal Sam Zervides said.
“The process is never rushed, but giving a gentle push when the time is right encourages taking that next step in their career. Offering support along the way is also important and when the individual is ready, I challenge them to take on activities or roles that take them beyond their comfort zone.”
According to Zervides, yet another reason why many mentoring programmes failed to serve their purpose was the fact that ‘open communication is thwarted rather than celebrated’ which often led to reluctance by individuals to share their next idea.
“It is important to remember that although we may be excellent businessowners and advice practitioners, we do not always have the answers and should welcome and encourage new ideas from within the team.
“Hence having an open mind as a mentor encourages mentees to contribute and have a say knowing that their suggestions are appreciated and will be considered seriously,” he added.
Finally, according to Zervides, mentees should not be the only ones who benefited from mentoring relationships as one of the most profound rewards of being a mentor should be the satisfaction of helping others.
“Reflecting on the past year, without doubt mentoring during the pandemic was instrumental in alleviating the feelings of isolation and detachment by the AWS team as the result of being required to work away from the office.
“Right now, but also post COVID-19, having access to a mentor can provide a much-needed boost for the wellbeing of your team – many of whom have experienced distress and tension due to work remotely and the new work environment.”
