The Manager's Pocket Guide to Effective Mentoring

Introduction

The confrontive dimension of mentoring may be the most difficult to sustain as a positive intervention. It is essential for the mentor to understand that the good faith attempt to challenge the mentee is not to be equated with the aggressive verbal and nonverbal behaviors associated with the heated and often hostile debate style of traditional win/lose argumentation. In the mentoring model of learning, the mentor “confronts” by guiding and supporting the mentee in the critical act of self-reflection; stress occurs because the mentor deliberately selects an issue to examine about which there is an apparent discrepancy.

For example, the mentee may openly state that career advancement is highly important, yet not actively participate ...