How can mentors help mentees overcome challenges in Team Motivation?

While setting up goals and objectives for the team is very important, setting the right goals and communicating them clearly to every team member is even more critical. Sometimes managers can be so focussed on delivery or the end goal, that they may not be able to clearly articulate roles and targets for different individuals within the team and how their work contributes to team objectives. A mentor in such cases plays an important role to evaluate the goals set for everyone in the team as a third person. This is helpful as the mentor is not biased by individuals or their past track record. The mentor , being an outsider can review the goals set for everyone more objectively and provide feedback on how they add upto the team's goals.

Mentors play a crucial role in guiding and supporting their mentees to overcome challenges in team motivation. Within a team dynamic, several strategies and approaches can be employed by mentors to aid their mentees in navigating and resolving these issues effectively. Firstly, mentors can assist mentees in understanding the intricacies of team dynamics. By elucidating the underlying principles of team motivation, such as the significance of shared goals, effective communication, and mutual respect, mentors can provide valuable insights that help mentees comprehend the dynamics at play within their teams. This understanding forms the foundation for addressing motivational challenges.

Communicating expectations and specific goals clear doubts and performance management issues along the way. It helps the mentee know what steps to take, towards a specific goal. Without clear goals and expectations, there will be a lot of confusion and disagreements that can stem out of it. There is no focus, but several options to choose from, making it hard for the mentee to stay motivated because nothing is being achieved. It's like chasing two/three rabbits at the same time, leading to frustration and tiredness. When the mentee knows what are the goals, he'll be able to make proper decisions, take the necessary steps to achieve these. He becomes more confident and motivated because he knows what to do and where he is heading.

A mentor can help you improve your communication skills, not only by teaching you what to say but also how to say it. By doing so, your communication will become like a symphony that resonates with each member of your team, no matter where they are located or what their role is. I have found that storytelling is a powerful tool in this regard. A mentor once told me that successful leaders are not only goal-setters but also storytellers. They weave narratives that bring goals to life and connect each team member to the broader purpose. Rather than simply dictating goals try initiating collaborative sessions that involve team members. This will foster a sense of ownership and ensure that goals are clear and align with the collective vision.

When setting and communicating goals, they should not only be clear but also have the following characteristics. The goals should be specific and outline what needs to be accomplished so the necessary steps to get there can be identified. Success should always be clear and defined, so the goals need to be measurable. Of course, the goals need to be attainable in a way that they're challenging but not impossible. Goals need to be attached to a bigger picture to give everybody involved a reason to commit, hence relatable. Last but not least, time is a significant parameter that keeps everybody on track and allows making some tweaks if things aren’t working. In that way, goals need to be time-bound.

Three behaviours are essential for building trust. The first is to create positive relationships on the team, and there are different ways to do this, including helping team members cooperate, resolving conflicts between others, giving honest feedback, and checking in with them about their concerns. The second behaviour is to demonstrate expertise and judgment because people are generally more likely to trust if they believe in the knowledge, experience and expertise to make good decisions about the team’s work. The last behaviour is consistency, in doing what we say we will do, by following through on commitments and keeping any promises. Those three behaviours have proven to help to build trust and rapport.

A valuable piece of advice from my mentor was about the importance of a shared vision. When every member of the team is working towards the same goal, trust is developed naturally. A mentor can help you align your goals and create a vision that draws everyone together. Moreover, equip yourself and your team with effective strategies to resolve conflicts. Conflicts are unavoidable, but how they're dealt with can impact trust. A mentor can guide you on addressing conflicts promptly, constructively, and with the focus on finding solutions instead of playing the blame game.

Very true and am strongly agree that trust play very important role in team motivation. Couple of time it's been noticed that without trust and interactions you want be able to achive the target. However leaders or mentors must interacting with team time to time.

A mentor can build a mentee to overcome his challenges by proper follow up and given positive ingredient that will stand out a mentee. Such ingredients include teaching and inclusiveness in a team cycle.

Manager/team leader can build the trust only by believing and “living” the goals him/herself in the first place. As well as being committed and consistent.

Mentors should create a supportive and trusting relationship with their mentees. Being available for guidance, active listening, and providing a safe space for mentees to share their concerns are all essential aspects of effective mentorship in the context of team motivation.

In my experience, feedback and recognition are two of the most essential parts of a mentorship. It keeps track of your mentees progress and also serves as a reminder to both the mentor and the mentee from time to time. Usually, I would run a 1-to-1 feedback discussion session to ensure that the conversation was fruitful. I think being able to communicate with trust and transparency is very important in mentoring. Our mentee must be able to accept our feedback and trust that it is in their best interest. Recognition is also very important because it is an encouragement and also serves as a milestone for a mentee. However, do not simply give recognition; make your recognition into something impactful.

As a leader, it's your responsibility to guide your team members in the art of recognizing each other's accomplishments. A good mentor can help you understand how to personalize recognition to fit each team member's preferences and strengths. It's not a one-size-fits-all approach; it's a unique melody that resonates with each individual. One of the most valuable pieces of advice I ever received from a mentor was the importance of timely recognition. It's crucial to celebrate small wins as they happen, rather than waiting for a grand finale. Consistent recognition is like watering a plant – it keeps motivation thriving. And the best part is, it doesn't have to be a grand gesture; a simple 'thank you' can work wonders.

Recognition is key. Celebrate the small wins. People will remember their mistakes and failures all too easily. They may forget to balance it with the wins. It’s often a long day with wins and losses. A healthy balanced outlook will keep motivation up.

Creativity thrives in the unknown. It's about letting go of the fear of failure and understanding that each misstep is a step closer to brilliance. A mentor can guide you on how to embrace uncertainty not as a challenge, but as an opportunity for growth. An extremely forward-thinking approach that I found helpful to encourage autonomy and creativity within your team is to implement a reverse mentoring program. This approach enables junior team members to mentor senior leaders on emerging trends, technologies, and innovative approaches. It fosters a culture of knowledge exchange and empowers junior members to contribute their unique perspectives.

These three techniques have been shown to be successful in encouraging autonomy and creativity: Make your expectations clear by offering objectives and guidelines, clarify already known pitfalls, and where team members can find support. Hold regular, but not too many, team meetings to convey important information to everyone simultaneously to check the progress as part of an open communication environment and show all team members that although they work independently, they contribute to the wins of the whole team, company or organisation. Measure your team's autonomy efforts by assessing the level of engagement and enthusiasm in private conversations with the team members to find out how they feel about their level of autonomy.

Given the criticality of the mentor in influencing company culture and performance, it is vital that one’s forces (internal or external) remain high. Even when conditions seem tough, a mentor should constantly remind themselves of why they are doing what they are doing. A sense of purpose will boost a mentor’s forces. Assess competence. It is said that “motivation comes from a sense of competence.” If there are any gaps that need to be filled, a mentor could develop themselves. Processing and weighing their capability may regulate their behavior towards work and the effort they expend in that direction. Autonomy. A mentor’s energy may be rooted in their experience of choice and the capacity to choose how to get their work done.

Each manager/team leader should have outside support either from his/her manager or outside mentor to keep his motivation, to check on the right direction from time to time, to deal with stress and setbacks from the “bird view “, cause being in the middle of the process sometimes narrows the wider perspective.

As a mentor, you have the role of being a purpose navigator, offering valuable insights on how to identify and pursue your passion in life while aligning your daily efforts with a greater, more meaningful goal. When you're faced with challenges or stress, it's important to take a moment to reflect on the things you're thankful for. This simple practice can shift your perspective and reignite your motivation by focusing on the positive aspects of your journey. One way to keep your motivation high is to set personal development challenges for yourself, such as learning a new skill, overcoming a fear, or achieving a specific fitness goal. These challenges provide a sense of accomplishment and help you work towards self-improvement.

To stay motivated, successful and self-aware leaders regularly reflect on their progress toward their goals and work consistently to improve themselves. All identified lacks, gaps, and shortcomings while encountering challenges and setbacks are openly addressed and shared to show decisive and exemplary leadership, inviting proactive support. A mentor keeps leaders accountable and on track by sharing their knowledge, experience and expertise in keeping self-motivation but also offers guidance, advice and support if needed.

As a leader lead like a mentor not a member, and make clear end to end communication with give some good legends examples for easy understanding.

In my view, individuals necessitate a robust educational foundation, encompassing vigorous induction and training programs, coupled with inspiration derived from an authentic leadership figure. Motivation, as observed, emerges as a consequential outcome of these aforementioned elements and is not spontaneously engendered.