Mentorship
The Mentor’s Role as the ultimate cheerleader
Reflections on mentoring and creating meaningful encouragement for emerging research and design talent.
In 2023, I had the privilege of mentoring four junior designers and researchers. Each brought diverse levels of experience and interests, and unique challenges that enriched my role as a mentor.
2 junior researchers
In my role as a senior product researcher on the team
2 junior designers
As a mentor with the UX Tree mentorship program
In this article, I’ll share what I learned from the experience — three lessons for anyone stepping into a mentoring role.
Building trust with your mentee
Kicking off your mentoring journey begins with investing time in mutual understanding. Learn about their career story and delve into the reasons behind their interest in UX.
Understanding their professional journey lets you help them identify existing skills they can leverage as UX professionals. That builds confidence early on, which supports their growth and development throughout the mentorship.
Clarifying your role as a mentor is also crucial, especially for mentees early in their careers who might not discern the difference between a mentor and a manager. Clearly articulating your role helps establish trust — and builds a relationship that promotes honesty and growth.
Establish clear goals and communication
Identify what your mentee aims to gain from the mentorship and establish goals that fulfil those aims. Goals set expectations for what’s feasible in the time you have, and give focus to what you’re working towards together.
★ Set one ‘north star’ goal
For example: contribute to a real-world design project.
How you communicate feedback matters just as much. In my own experience as a mentee, too much feedback without direction can be hurtful to a mentee’s growth.
A mentee should never leave a feedback session with more questions than answers.
Provide opportunities for growth
As a mentor, you should be your mentee’s biggest cheerleader.
Give visibility and a voice to their successes to promote their growth across your team and organisation.
Look for opportunities that let them challenge themselves. It can be beneficial for anyone to get out of their comfort zone:
- Leading a kick-off meeting
- Presenting a project to a group
If your mentee doesn’t feel ready for these challenges yet, it’s your role as a mentor to help them grow the skills they need, so they’re confident enough to take them on.
The culture to build
All failures lead to growth.
Building that culture into your mentorship creates an environment where mentees feel empowered to embrace challenges and continuously grow.