A guide for mentees: Make Mentoring Work
Mentoring works best when you lead it. Here is how.
What this guide covers
What this guide covers
What this guide covers
What mentoring gives
Mentoring helps careers, modestly
Mentored people report more career satisfaction, while gains in pay are smaller.
- Career satisfaction clear benefit
- Pay and promotion smaller effect
Taking the lead
Proactive mentees get more mentoring
Proactive people received more mentoring, and that led to more career success.
Asking for help
People say yes more than you think
People underestimated by up to half how often others agree to help.
What a mentor gives
Know what a mentor can give
A mentor gives perspective, questions and contacts, not a job, money or your decisions.
- Can give experience, questions, feedback, introductions
- Cannot give a job, money, a decision made for you
The first meeting
Say what you want from it
Tell your mentor your goal, how you like to work and what you expect.
- This year I want to… One goal, in a sentence.
- It helps me most when you… Ask questions, share stories, challenge me.
Agreeing the rules
Agree how you will work
Written agreements on support, communication and conduct help align expectations.
- How often we meet
- How we reach each other
- What stays between us
- How and when we end
Owning the calendar
Keep the meetings going yourself
Book the next meeting before this one ends, and send the agenda first.
- Book the next date before you leave
- Send the agenda two days before
- Write your next step right after
Their time
Treat their time with care
Come prepared, cancel early if you must, and reply within a day or two.
- Arrive with one question
- Cancel a day ahead, not an hour
- Reply within two days
- Say thank you, with a result
Mentornity in Claude
Use Mentornity from Claude
Ask in your own words; Claude finds meetings, opens your hours and drafts your messages.
Connect it once
Add Mentornity in Claude or another MCP assistant, then sign in.
Ask in your own words
Find a slot, move a meeting, read profiles, fill in forms.
A preview before every change
Claude shows what will happen; nothing changes until you say yes.
Disconnect any time
Claude sees only what you see; Settings shows what it did recently.
Connect it once
Add Mentornity in Claude or another MCP assistant, then sign in.
Ask in your own words
Find a slot, move a meeting, read profiles, fill in forms.
A preview before every change
Claude shows what will happen; nothing changes until you say yes.
Disconnect any time
Claude sees only what you see; Settings shows what it did recently.
Sources
The research behind this presentation
- Allen, T. D., Eby, L. T., Poteet, M. L., Lentz, E. & Lima, L. (2004) Career benefits associated with mentoring for protégés: A meta-analysis Journal of Applied Psychology, 89(1), 127-136
- Turban, D. B., Moake, T. R., Wu, S. Y.-H. & Cheung, Y. H. (2017) Linking extroversion and proactive personality to career success: The role of mentoring received and knowledge Journal of Career Development, 44(1), 20-33
- Flynn, F. J. & Lake, V. K. B. (2008) If you need help, just ask: Underestimating compliance with direct requests for help Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 95(1), 128-143
- Huskins, W. C., Silet, K., Weber-Main, A. M., Begg, M. D., Fowler, V. G., Hamilton, J. et al. (2011) Identifying and aligning expectations in a mentoring relationship Clinical and Translational Science, 4(6), 439-447
Send your mentor one message today
Your goal, what you hope to get, and two dates for the first meeting.