# One Minute Mentoring: How to find and work with a mentor - and why you’ll benefit from being one

Ken Blanchard, Claire Diaz-Ortiz

The bestselling co-author of the legendary The One Minute Manager® and a former Twitter executive join forces to create the ultimate guide to creating powerful mentoring relationships.

The past decade has seen the dramatic rise of a word now well known in corporate hallways: mentoring. But a new awareness about mentoring hasn’t necessarily meant an increased understanding of how to implement the practice.

While most people agree that having a mentor is a good thing, they don’t know how to find one or use one. And despite widespread approval for the idea of being a mentor, most people don’t think they have the time or skills to do so.

Positive mentoring relationships can change the way we lead and help us succeed. In One Minute Mentoring, legendary management guru Ken Blanchard and Claire Diaz-Ortiz, a former Twitter executive and early employee, combine their knowledge to provide a systematic approach to intergenerational mentoring, giving readers great insight into the power and influence of mentoring and encouraging them to pursue their own mentoring relationships.

Using his classic parable format, Blanchard explains why developing effective communication and relationships across generations can be a tremendous opportunity for companies and individuals alike. One Minute Mentoring is the go-to source for learning why mentoring is the secret ingredient to professional and personal success.

## Copyright


Thorsons

An imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers

1 London Bridge Street

London SE1 9GF

www.harpercollins.co.uk

First published by Thorsons 2017

FIRST EDITION

© Blanchard Family Partnership and Claire Diaz-Ortiz 2017

Cover layout design © HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd 2017

A catalogue record of this book is available from the British Library

The authors assert the moral right to be identified as the authors of this work

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

This is a business parable. Names, characters, places, businesses, events, and incidents are either the products of the authors’ imaginations or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

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Source ISBN: 9780008146818

Ebook Edition © May 2017 ISBN: 9780008146825

Version: 2017-03-29

## Contents

Cover

Title Page

Copyright

A Note to Readers

Introduction

Part I

No Compass, No Map: Life in a Mentorless Land

Asking for Direction

Who Me, a Mentor?

The Search

The First Meeting

Mission Imperative

Engagement: Establishing the Relationship

Taking Time for Introspection

Speaking Your Truth

Learning to Network

Building Trust

Networking Done Right

Sharing Opportunities

Review and Renewal

Mentoring Never Ends

Part II

The Mentor Model

Creating a Mentoring Program in Your Organization

Coaching Versus Mentoring

Acknowledgments

About the Authors

Services Available

Join Us Online

About the Publisher


### A Note to Readers

One Minute Mentoring is a fictional parable about the power of finding—or being—a mentor. Perhaps you’re wondering about the title. Why One Minute Mentoring? Because we have found that the best advice we ever gave or received was given in less than a minute. In other words, the guidance that really made a difference did not come in the form of long, complex theories—it came in short, meaningful insights.


### Introduction

Are you feeling less than certain about the path forward in your career? Are you wondering if you really have what it takes to reach your goals? Are you wondering what your goals should be? Then perhaps it’s time you found a mentor.

Maybe you answered all the above questions with a resounding, “No!” If so, perhaps it’s time you became a mentor.

The Business Hall of Fame is filled with the names of people who discovered that finding a mentor made all the difference in reaching success, as well as the names of leaders who attained greatness by mentoring others. You can be in that good company.

Most people agree that having a mentor is a good thing, but they don’t know how to find one or use one. And while most agree that being a mentor is a good thing, they don’t think they have the time or skills to do so.

That’s why we wrote this book: to give readers simple knowledge and easy-to-use tools to find and leverage mentoring relationships.

No matter what kind of mentoring you get involved in—new hire, peer-to-peer, adult-to-adolescent, or cross-generational—we know that it can positively transform not only your life, but the lives of others as well.

What is cross-generational mentoring? That’s when a young person is paired with an older person, so they both can learn and grow. Ken is a leadership expert in his midseventies and Claire is a former Twitter executive in her midthirties, and that makes us a living example of the lessons we are teaching. Through our own mentoring partnership—and through others—we have personally experienced the life-changing power of this practice. That said, we do want to point out that the age spread doesn’t have to be as wide as ours for mentors and mentees to get value out of the relationship.

In One Minute Mentoring, we tell the story of Josh Hartfield, a young sales rep whose motivation is flagging, and Diane Bertman, a sales executive whose crammed schedule isn’t delivering the satisfaction it once did. As the story of Diane and Josh unfolds, readers will learn the six action steps to creating a successful mentoring relationship, as well as key insights such as:

> How to find a mentoring partnership—whether you are a mentee seeking a mentor or a mentor seeking a mentee.

> How to work with a mentoring partner to make the positive changes you want to see in your work and life.

> How to apply succinct, One Minute mentoring advice.

> How to tap into the wisdom and skills of people from all age groups and backgrounds.

Successful people do not reach their goals alone. Behind even the most independent achiever is a person or group of people who helped that person succeed. So no matter your age, we encourage you to start finding a mentor today.

We also encourage you to mentor someone else, because those who extend a helping hand to others have much to gain. In the words of an ancient Buddhist proverb, “If you light a lamp for someone, it will also brighten your own path.”

If you are ready to build a powerful mentoring relationship and watch your work and life transform, then read on!

KEN BLANCHARD

coauthor of The New One Minute Manager®

CLAIRE DIAZ-ORTIZ

author of Twitter for Good

Part I


### No Compass, No Map: Life in a Mentorless Land

Josh Hartfield sat at his desk and stared at his computer screen, paralyzed about what to do next. His in-box contained fifty priority e-mails. He had seven urgent voice mails from existing clients, and he needed to finish a new presentation before a sales appointment on Friday.

In terms of work, he had plenty. In terms of motivation, he had none. It wasn’t exactly the ideal frame of mind to be in for his quarterly review, which was coming up in five minutes.

“Ready?”

Josh looked up to see his boss, Eva Garcetti, who managed western regional sales for their company.

“Sure,” Josh said with a halfhearted smile.

He followed Eva into her office and took a seat facing her imposing mahogany desk.

“Let’s not beat around the bush, Josh. Your numbers this quarter have been mediocre at best. This is becoming a pattern with you. What’s going on?”

“Just a slump. I’m pulling out of it,” he said, doing his best to believe it.

Five years after joining JoySoft as a sales rep, Josh was treading water. His job was stale, and he was no longer progressing in his career.

“I’ve heard that before, Josh. I think you could use some help. I recommend you spend some time with Eric. He set a new sales record last week.”

Josh tried not to wince. Eric Aguilar was the upstart new sales rep now sharing a cubicle with him. Eric was just a year out of college, and already he was outperforming Josh two to one. So Josh wasn’t surprised by Eva’s recommendation. Still, it was depressing to think that he was in such bad shape that he was being told to take pointers from a new hire.

Do some personal reflection about what your strengths and weaknesses are.

“I know my suggestion might sound discouraging, but I’m concerned about you, Josh. It’s like you’ve lost your motivation. The first few years you were doing all right. As you know, though, sales isn’t for everybody as a long-term career.”

Josh swallowed hard.

“What are you getting at, Eva? Should I be dusting off my résumé?”

“Not necessarily. What I’m suggesting is that you do some personal reflection about what your strengths and weaknesses are. By spending more time with Eric, you can get a sense of why he’s doing so well.”

“Beginner’s luck?” Josh said with a weak grin.

“I don’t think so. Seriously, why don’t we talk again after you’ve had some time to think about how you can either get your numbers up or maybe redirect your career energies? I’d like to help in either case.”

Walking back to his cubicle, Josh reflected on Eva’s advice. He hadn’t always felt so discouraged. Back when he had just graduated from college with a degree in business, he’d had all the energy in the world. The results of a vocational preference test indicated that he might be good in sales, which led him to a job as a junior sales rep at JoySoft. He’d fantasized about becoming a top salesperson.

Five years later, reality was staring him hard in the face. At this point, he was just hoping he could hold on to his job for another year or two—enough time to figure out what he really wanted to do.

As Josh entered his cubicle, Eric was pumping his fist in the air.

“Signed!” Eric shouted happily, slamming down the phone. He pulled out a red marker and drew a big X across the day’s date on his wall calendar. As Josh had learned from Eric, the calendar was a motivational tool he’d picked up from a business book. Every X represented a new client. According to Eric, the more Xs in a row you got, the more likely you were to get more.

Eric had a lot of Xs this month.

Good thing I don’t have one of those calendars up, Josh thought.

With a sigh, he picked up his mug and headed for the break room. He needed a breather from Eric’s enthusiasm. As Josh refilled his mug, he realized he was at a crossroads. He needed consoling—and good advice.

Fortunately, at times like these he knew just the right number to call.

ONE MINUTE INSIGHTS

Pause, Reflect, and Learn

> Where are you in your life? Are you on an upward trajectory, or have you hit a plateau?

> Do you feel uncertain about the direction you’re heading?

> Are you open to learning from others?