Priming the Pump
The expression “priming the pump” has real meaning for people who grew up in a rural area in the fifties. Located in the most rural backyards, water pumps required priming to function. You literally “seeded” water from the ground by pouring a large pitcher of water into the top and then pumping madly up and down on the handle. To a young child who thought that on-demand water came only from a faucet, “water making”—wringing water out of the earth by your own efforts—had special magic.
If there is ever a time when the word “catalyst” applies to the role of mentor, it is during dialogue. The human version of priming the pump is assisting insight making by helping the discussion accomplish its function. There are five skills associated ...
Get Managers As Mentors, 3rd Edition now with the O’Reilly learning platform.
O’Reilly members experience books, live events, courses curated by job role, and more from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers.
