Mentoring and Coaching

Written by Tony Aloise

Mentoring and coaching are related terms – there is overlap yet distinctions. I like the following definitions as provided by a friend, Rina Saperstein, from a paper she wrote.

• Mentoring is working one-on-one with another person (maybe a group) to help them reach their potential.  Mentoring is interactive, and although it works towards goals, those goals are set by the mentee, and change over time. Mentoring is about inspiration, motivation, and information.

• Coaching is a professionalized version of mentoring where the mentee employs a coach to help him or her achieve a goal.  The analogy to a sports coach is intentional, and many of the best characteristics of coaching are used in mentoring as well.

Mentoring is a relationship-based process owned by the mentee with outcomes directed by the mentee.  It can be unstructured in that you simply ask the mentee “what is on your mind” or structured with an agreed-to agenda or topic.  It might have an organizational objective, e.g. to stay in school or plan a career. It can be long-term (months/years) or short-term (for the duration of a program).

There may be times of coaching on specific topics within the mentoring relationship to enhance skills and capabilities – they are intertwined. My simple way to check: You’re in mentoring mode when you are listening or asking questions. You are in coaching mode when you are offering ways to solve a problem or gain a skill. Do both, but know the “mode” you are in.