If this has whetted your appetite to become a mentor, what steps do you need to take to make it happen?

The first step is to find a mentee. Consider whether there is someone whom you could mentor at work, or through your professional networks, Pharmacy Unscripted mentoring service, Local Practice Forums (LPFs) or Local Pharmaceutical Committees (LPCs), or via the RPS mentoring service. When approaching another person about mentorship, be clear about what you think you can offer a mentee and describe how you think mentorship could help that person.

If you are asked to mentor another person, find out what they want to get out of mentorship and why they approached you. It can be useful to ask the following questions: What does mentoring mean to you? How would you define mentoring? What do you want to get out of this mentoring process? What do you want from a mentor? Are you looking for advice and guidance or someone to help you find your own solutions?

Remember that getting to know each other is a two-way process, so provide your response to these questions as well.

It’s fine for the mentor or mentee to say no to a possible mentoring relationship after having these preliminary discussions. It’s better to acknowledge that someone else might be more suitable, rather than entering into a mentoring relationship that one or more parties isn’t comfortable with.

Once you have agreed to enter into a mentoring relationship, you need to work out the logistics, such as whether you will meet face to face or use phone or Skype, the frequency of the mentoring sessions, the duration of mentoring, the responsibilities of both parties, confidentiality and the overall purpose of mentoring.

It is also advisable to discuss boundaries of the mentoring relationship and what will and won’t be discussed and a referral mechanism.

For example, if your mentee was suffering from extreme stress or family problems they may need referral to medical support or counselling.

All too often mentoring relationships miss the vital step of getting to know each other before launching straight into discussing difficult work situations or developing a career plan. Taking time to get to know each other at the start of the mentoring relationship is necessary to establish rapport and trust, and without this your mentee can feel uncomfortable disclosing information to you.