Mentoring Plus Programme
About the programme and what we aim to achieve
Let’s start with the name – ‘Mentoring Plus’ - where did it come from and why does it matter?
From working with several mature and experienced entrepreneurs and successful business owners, it became clear that a ‘one size fits all’ prescriptive support programme is not always suitable.
As a business owner we have very specific needs and goals, and let’s face it, given the nature of who and what we are, we often push beyond the limits and boundaries become blurred.
As the leader of your own organisation – however large of small it is – and it does not matter whether you are a ‘one-man band’ or have teams of staff, living life at the top of the tree can become pretty lonely. The outer facade often does not reflect the inner turmoil going through the minds of the busy and incredibly ambitious entrepreneur.
A good analogy is that of a swan gracefully gliding across the lake. The outer facade is what goes on above the surface. The ongoing business life, mental challenges, continuous turmoil and stress are represented by what’s going on below the surface. Not only are your feet furiously paddling with all their might just to stay afloat, it often feels like your feet are tied together with rocks attached trying to pull you down.
The problem – and there can be many related smaller problems that make up the sum of the challenges you face – has to remain below the surface because if it reaches the surface, you fear things may get out of control. It’s often a combination of survival, ego, image, and pride all rolled into one!
What if we could take the swan out of the water, release the shackles, refresh and re-energise the feet and put you back in the water with a hidden outboard motor?
Would that make life easier?
Do you think you would then gracefully power towards your goals rather than continually struggle just to keep moving?
Would a renewed sense of purpose and direction help take your success to a whole new level?
Imagine what life would be like if everything that’s currently holding you back was removed and left in the past, and you were free to glide forward without limits.
Mentoring Plus is a combination of mentoring, coaching, teaching and other skills where you can work with your mentor in a secure and trusted environment behind ‘closed doors’. It is your opportunity to work ON your business not just IN it!
A safe place to work on areas of your business and personal life that are holding you back without fear of judgement, criticism or blame.
Your relationship with your mentor will cover many areas as they seek to understand, support and push you to become the very best you can be.
At times your relationship with your mentor will be just that – a mentor / mentee relationship. Other times your mentor may play the role of a business or life coach, a teacher, manager, counsellor, trusted advisor, friend, and even ‘the prosecution’ as they hold you to account. And they will always have your best interest at heart!
It will be for you to decide what you want to achieve and set the end goals – although your mentor may help you define what they actually look like. They will draw on a wide and deep range of knowledge and experience and use a variety of techniques and tools to help you every step of the way. This is a highly personalised programme where you’ll work closely with your mentor over an extended period to make sure you get the full support and input you need to help you reach your desired destination and achieve your goals.
The boundaries of the Mentoring Plus Programme cannot be restricted to just the business areas of life as it has been designed to help entrepreneurs and business owners achieve their full potential. That inevitably impacts other areas of life, including: health, family and other important relationships, lifelong learning, finances, and even your personal life. By their very nature, each area impacts on the others and only focusing on one or two in isolation will inevitably deliver, at best, limited results – hence the need to take a holistic approach without limitations.
Whilst mentoring is a great way to share knowledge and experience, in the Mentoring Plus Programme your mentor may need to go beyond the remit of just mentoring to help you as a mentee / client achieve your goals. Sometimes it is appropriate to call on other skills and methods to achieve the desired results, such as coaching, teaching, and even an element of managing or counselling.
On occasions mentees may need to be challenged and held to account to help break through limiting beliefs or destructive behaviour patterns, in these cases questioning techniques from other disciplines may yield better results.
Our ultimate goal is that you, as the mentee, get the right help, advice, and nurturing experience to develop your skills and understanding that ultimately helps to you achieve your goals.
In a nutshell, the Mentoring Plus Programme has been designed to help you shape your life and achieve your goals. It is a unique programme and is “mentoring without limits!"
Deliverables
The Mentoring Plus Programme will be tailored to your specific needs therefore, your mentor will encourage you to develop a number of deliverables to support you on your journey that you can later refer to.
These may include a personal and business SWOT Analysis, goal definitions and updates, project plans, business and marketing plans, personal evaluation documents, and a reflective diary or journal to help maintain focus and keep you on track.
You will agree your deliverables with your mentor and review them on a regular basis during your accountability sessions.
Here’s how it works
The Mentoring Plus Programme is an ongoing programme of tailored and targeted support. The success of your programme requires a significant personal investment from both you as the mentee and your mentor. Therefore, the suggested minimum commitment is 12 months, during which your mentor will review your progress with you to ensure you are both getting the maximum value from the programme. Your mentoring package will be tailored to your specific requirements and you are encouraged to set clear objectives before you start to ensure you have a realistic 'yard stick' to measure your progress.
You will spend approximately an hour a fortnight working with your mentor. These sessions will be conducted via online video link (such as Zoom Meetings). Your sessions may also be conducted via telephone if the preferred options are not available.
You will also be able to communicate with your mentor via email and they will always try to respond in a timely manner, however you must bear in mind they have other commitments and may not be able to reply as quickly as they would ideally like.
This is your investment
Money
The Mentoring Plus Programme is tailored to your specific needs and your mentor will advise on the best approach for you before you start, including initial time scale and mentoring fee. Your fees are payable monthly in advance on presentation of invoice unless otherwise agreed in writing with 21st Century Marketing Limited.
Time - Sessions
You must commit to spending the required amount of time working 1:1 with your mentor. During these sessions you are required to be ‘distraction free’ from mobile phones, staff, partners, email, and social media interruptions. The key word during these sessions is FOCUS - In fact, we want to take you beyond focus and get, and keep, you 'LASERED' on achieving your goals!!!
Time – Activities / Homework
Learning is one thing and doing is another! The most effective way for you to learn is to apply and embed new knowledge as you go.
You should think of the Mentoring Plus programme as ‘on the job training’ and you will also be expected to demonstrate application of new learning as you progress.
The more you put into the programme the more you will get out – it’s a simple as that! But as a ‘rule of thumb’ you should expect to spend twice the amount of time working on your activities on your own as you do with your mentor.
For example, if your 1:1 mentoring sessions are scheduled to take approximately 2 hours per month, you should therefore plan (and allocate time) to spend at least 4 hours per month on your supporting activities.
Additional Investment
Depending on your particular goals your mentor may recommend other resources, such as, books, courses, additional learning material, software, or anything else which may help you reach your goals more efficiently and effectively.
These will always be discussed with you and the reason for your mentor’s recommendation will be made clear.
Typically, these will be from external suppliers and they are recommendations, not obligations, and it is entirely at your own discretion whether or not you accept your mentor’s advice.
Our Commitment To Each Other
You commit to
Your mentor commits to
When to book your sessions
You may book your mentoring sessions between the hours of 9am and 5pm (UK Time) Monday – Friday.
You will agree the timing of your sessions in advance with your mentor using the online booking link provided to confirm your time slot. It is your responsibility to ensure you book well enough in advance to ensure you schedule your sessions to fit in with your own commitments.
Your mentor will do their upmost to accommodate your sessions at your preferred time, but please bear in mind they also have other commitment so a little flexibility may be required.
Each session will be conducted either online using Zoom Meetings or, on occasions where practical, in person at a mutually convenient location agreed with your mentor. All session must be taken within the calendar month to which they relate and unused sessions may not be carried forward unless otherwise agreed with your mentor. Sessions may be rescheduled with reasonable notice and as agreed with your mentor, but sessions cancelled at short or with no notice will be forfeited and your mentoring fee will still be payable.
Progress Journal
You are encouraged to keep a Progress Journal for the entire length of the programme to keep track of your activities and achievements.
This will help you monitor your progress and will be the focal point for your Accountability Call with your mentor.
In addition, we’ll be building up a library of material you can later use to refine your goals and plan to achieve them and potentially use in your social media activity if you feel this is appropriate.
And let's not forget the final piece...
The Key Benefit of the Mentoring Plus Programme is to Help YOU Reach Your FULL Potential and Achieve ALL Your Goals!
If you think working with one of our mentors will help you take your business to the next level, then your next step is to...
This is a FREE consultation and you are under no obligation to continue if the programme is not right for you!