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Essentials Careers Advice and development Mentoring Thrive mentoring A year with Thrive Month 1 - First Meeting

Month 1 - First Meeting

Meeting your mentor for the first time can be a daunting experience, so our focus this month is on informal ways to get to know your mentor and find common ground. Please note this talking point is longer than others to help you make a good start in your partnership.

Firstly we recommend establishing a rapport with your mentor.

This means:

  • Defining your partnership commitments – What do you both expect from the partnership and are there any ground rules you want to set.
  • Scheduling communication – Thrive is all about flexibility, but consistent communication is key, so agree on how you will communicate and when.

Secondly, a good partnership is built on understanding, so we recommend understanding both your own and your mentor’s motivation for taking part in Thrive.

  • Ask yourself and then explain to your mentor why you signed up to Thrive. What pulled in your interest in the scheme? How does it relate to the mentoring goals you defined in the preparation session?
  • Then ask you mentor, what motivated them to take part in Thrive mentoring?

Finally, use this first meeting as an opportunity to get to know your mentor and their job/industry.

  • Ask them about the career.
  • How they got to the position they are in today?
  • How would they describe their industry?

To get to know your mentor better as a person, Mentorloop have provided a set of 25 questions you can ask your mentor.

  • What would the title of your autobiography be?
  • What is your dream job role and why?
  • If you could learn a new skill, what would it be and why?

And many more…

We hope these ideas and resources help you get to know your mentor better and help to in starting your mentoring partnership. Please note you now have access to all talking points we offer, these points will span the whole scheme year from September to June. You can use these once a month or you can pick and choose the topics that suit you best. If you need any more resources to help you through your partnership, check out our webpage or contact the team via mentoring@reading.ac.uk

Month 2