6 qualities of great mentors: Care, commit and everything in between

Behind every successful individual is an army of great mentors, and however subjective, the path to success involves the same milestones for everyone: learning with passion and persistence.

I was lucky to learn this lesson very early on in my career, and I believe that it is in these formative years—the first 12 to 18 months of your career—that your future is shaped. My early years, for example, were defined by three incredible mentors: Late Taruna Kalra, Anju Devasar, and Usha Rajeev. These wonder women not only helped shape who I am today, but also defined what great mentors do. ?Here’s my attempt at listing down what I learned from them:

1.??????Nurture with care: When I was just starting out, I often asked myself: Do I really belong? Do I have it in me to survive? ?My mentors found me in those vulnerable moments and spent time to make me feel special, care for me, and made me aware of their confidence in my abilities. They helped me deal with ambiguity and be comfortable with it.

2.??????Navigate, not solve challenges: When you don’t understand something or find something difficult to solve, you want to run to your manager for help. My mentors never gave me a solution directly but put me on the path where I would find one, thereby helping me learn better. Consider how difficult it can be to show restraint to the easy way out with challenging deadlines looming.

3.??????Cultivate patience and persistence: As a young professional, I was impatient and instinctive. These mentors taught me the virtue of being calm, composed, and structured; to not let little things come in the way of the objective or goal; ?to smile a lot more (smile does wonders) and to work towards a solution where everybody wins. And most importantly to persevere: I would often watch them deal with situations, some of them completely hopeless, without giving up and invariably turning things around in their favour.

4.??????Pursue excellence relentlessly: They also taught me about taking pride in one’s work but without compromising on quality or excellence. Evolving yourself and improving your work is an everyday chore, not a one-time activity. ?Hard work and the pursuit of excellence was imperative if you want to be the best and believe that nothing is impossible.

5.??????Practice empathy: EQ > IQ. Always. These mentors with their exceptional emotional quotient inspired ordinary team members like me to do extraordinary things. I observed how they would invest time in developing their younger colleagues, make people feel special, and prioritized human nature over logic in their decision-making.

6.??????Build advocates: Great mentors enable more opportunities for you: they take the brickbats when something goes wrong but push you up front for credits when things go well. My mentors focused on developing me, unconditionally, and celebrated as they watched me grow to my potential, even if that meant they risked losing me as a teammate. They were the wind beneath my wings, allowing me to fly higher.

To mentor is rewarding, yet underrated; to be mentored by the exceptional—a true privilege. Those who are just starting out their careers: Choose your mentors wisely and choose them early, for they could have an incredible impact in shaping the rest of your life. Observe them astutely and challenge yourself every day. To all those who are fortunate to have mentors: let’s get together and give back the knowledge we earned and the lessons we learned. I did my bit today. Will you??