RailsConf 2023 - Mentorship in Three Acts by Adam Cuppy

Explore the art of mentorship through three key archetypes: coach, consultant, and colleague. Learn how to build a mentorship program that fosters growth, trust, and resilience in your team.

Key takeaways

Providing options is essential in mentorship as it allows mentees to explore different approaches.
Mentorship can be built into daily work by identifying what each team member needs and providing opportunities for growth.
Three archetypes of mentorship are the coach, the consultant, and the colleague, each with their own role in guiding and supporting the mentee.
Coaching mentors help mentees develop new skills and build confidence, while consulting mentors provide guidance on specific tasks or projects.
Colleague mentors work alongside mentees to develop skills and build trust.
Pairing up team members with similar skill sets but different levels of experience can be an effective way to promote growth and learning.
Test-driven development can be used to structure mentorship and provide a clear outcome.
Celebrating mistakes and failure can help mentees develop resilience and learn from their experiences.
Lead dominoes represent the essential building blocks of understanding that mentees need to have in order to make progress.
The figure eight knot can be used as a metaphor for mentorship, as it requires cooperation and coordination to tie effectively.
Mentors can help mentees develop a growth mindset by encouraging them to take risks and push themselves outside of their comfort zones.
Peer-programming can be an effective way to promote learning and collaboration among team members.
The role of the mentor is not to provide answers, but to ask guiding questions that encourage the mentee to think critically and develop their own solutions.
The success of mentorship depends on the mentor’s ability to listen actively, ask the right questions, and provide support and guidance.

RailsConf 2023 - Mentorship in Three Acts by Adam Cuppy

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