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Ben Lemieux

Mentor Activity Assignment

August 6, 2015

Mentoring

Whether it is the advice that helps a friend solve an issue or providing guidance to your

child on how to tie their shoes, many of us use past experiences or prior knowledge in our own

daily problem solving. This transfer of knowledge from one to another is also crucial to the

development of a student or entry level employee coming into the workforce. Mentoring is a

special relationship between two people, a mentor and a mentee, that can help the mentee

develop a greater sense of self-awareness and confidence.1 The role of the mentor is to pass on

valuable skills, knowledge and insights to the mentee to help develop their skills and

professional career.

After a brief conversation with Joe Lynch (Oral communication, July 2015), certified

medical dosimetrist at the VA medical center in Minneapolis, MN and Kyle Niess (Oral

communication, July 2015), an account executive at Odney Advertising, I further understood the

meaning of mentorship and its affect in two completely different fields within the workforce.

Kyle defined mentoring as, “Mentoring is the process of assisting one or a group of individuals

while they are learning a set of skills to give them a better opportunity to retain the information

they will be using in a selected field of work.” Although this is true, mentorship goes far beyond

someone just helping someone out every once in a while. It is a bond that is developed between

the mentor and mentee that may take place over a short period of time but can last a lifetime.

The relationship between the mentor and mentee usually is not the same as a teacher and

student. The mentor usually knows the mentee on a deeper level and may understand the external

factors that impact their work and care about them succeeding in what they are working toward.

Although like a teacher, mentors learn to adjust their teaching techniques to match the mentee’s

learning style. Not everyone learns in the same way. Some people are quick learners while others

may need more one-on-one time to understand a concept. In my conversation with Joe Lynch, he

stated that teachers take information from a book and make it “alive” whereas mentors are

introducing and reinforcing topic on a practical or clinical setting. Mentors may also benefit by

learning from the mentee. Sometimes seeing a mentor’s approach can create new ways to resolve

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difficult issue within a workplace. In this situation the mentor benefits by continually grading

their own “bag of tricks” and providing a broader range of tools to use or pass on to a mentee.

There are many attributes that create an effective mentor. After my conversations with

Kyle and Joe, listening and respect are two things that stood out to them. I also feel that to be a

great mentor you need to be a great communicator. Great communication skills between the

mentor and mentee is the most important skill that a mentor can possess. This is the framework

for providing knowledge to the mentee; if communicated effectively it will be easier for the

mentee to grasp the concept or technique. Another trait that is important is mutual trust. Trust

that the mentee will do the correct thing and the mentee trusting what the mentor has taught

them.

Most importantly mentoring is about transferring information, competence and

experience to mentees so they can make good use of the information and/or skills to help

promote self-confidence.2 Not everyone has skills to be a mentor. It is something that comes

natural to some people but tougher for others.1 Sometimes it is more difficult for one to be an

expert in the topic, patience, willingness to work with others and be an effective communicator.

Mentoring is an important concept in the world of medical dosimetry.

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References

1. Lenards, N. Professionalism and Mentoring: Mentoring. [SoftChalk]. La Crosse, WI: UW-L

Medical Dosimetry Program; 2014.

2. Hawkins JW, Fontenot HB. Mentorship: the heart and soul of health care leadership. J Healthc

Leadersh. 2010;2:31-34. http://dx.doi.org/10.2147/JHL.S7863

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Appendix A

Ben Lemieux

Mentoring Interview with Joe Lynch, CMD (transcript)

July 28, 2015

Q: Define mentoring in your own words.

A: Mentoring is somebody that will help you through the professional process and teach you how to

use their equipment and can hopefully set an example of work ethic, patient care and respect of

coworkers.

Q: Did you have a mentor during your training for your current profession?

A: Yes, luckily I had several.

Q: How do you think a mentor is different than a teacher?

A: I think they are two different skill sets. A teacher is a very difficult skills set too but they have to

take what comes from a book and make it alive in a way to teach the student and then ask

appropriate test questions. Mentoring you are trying to teach a more practical setting.

Q: What do you expect from a mentor? What do you think is the most important aspect of

mentoring?

A: What I would expect from a mentor is that the more time a student puts into the mentor, they

should get back. That is my experience with who I have been a mentee. Also always being polite

to the student and if they ask a question to always get back to them in a timely manner. Also

making the whole experience very positive because that was how it was when I was being

mentored.

Q: Have you had any mentors that have impacted you in your life? What did they teach

you professionally?

A: Working and being a student at the University of Minnesota I had Dr. Gerbi who would always

encourage me to wear a tie. He thought it looked professional and he always said if you wanted

to be treated professionally you need to look professionally. Also Dr. Duesenbery, the way that

she would take care of her patients and just how smart she was. She always showed me how to

do your job well. Those are things that they really helped me with and helped me grow.

Q: How can someone become a more effective mentor? What skills do they need to have?

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A: You are always working to improve your skillset. Every student has their own learning skillset

and are always challenging you in a positive way. So you should keep up with the technology

and keeping up with current readings. Also always having respect for your profession and for

others.

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Appendix B

Ben Lemieux

Mentoring Interview with Kyle Niess (transcript)

July 30, 2015

Q: Define mentoring in your own words.

A: Mentoring is the process of assisting one or a group of individuals while they are learning a set

of skills to give them a better opportunity to retain the information they will be using in a

selected field of work.

Q: Did you have a mentor during your training for your current profession?

A: Yes

Q: How do you think a mentor is different than a teacher?

A: I think a mentor is different from a teacher in that you are getting one on one interaction with the

individual and you are focusing on one topic or field of study.

Q: What do you expect from a mentor? What do you think is the most important aspect of

mentoring?

A: I expect to get an honest evaluation of what the profession or field of study is like and not just a,

“I really like my job”. I want to know the highs and the lows, and know what I have to look

forward to. To the same notion, honesty is the most important aspect of mentoring.

Q: Have you had any mentors that have impacted you in your life? What did they teach

you professionally?

A: Yes, but not just one…each mentor brought a different set of skills to me from which I learned

from.

Q: How can someone become a more effective mentor? What skills do they need to have?

A: To become an effective mentor you need to have great listening skills and know that not

everyone you mentor will retain information in the same way as the person before. Honesty,

sharing past experiences and a willingness to help an individual are key traits to making a great

mentor.