Mentoring…experience never gets old
LOOKING BACK 40 years, average moms would have more than three children. Now, parents who have more than three children would be questioned by their peers. In the past, old folks often lived as part of a large extended family. Now, more and more single family is seen in our society.
By 2031 one-third of Thai population will reach their 60th birthdays, and by 2025 Thais aged over 65 will double to 14 per cent from 7 per cent in 2003. This does not merely mean that Thailand will soon be a full-fledged aging society, but it means the proportion of young people at work is decreasing.
The era of the baby boomers has created a current bottleneck in which much of the knowledge and practices which have shaped the organisation over the past several decades are now beginning to be lost due to inadequate mentoring programmes.
Mentoring is hardly new as it has a history that goes way back to ancient times; Socrates and Plato, Freud and Jung or back to the origin of the name Mentor in Greek mythology (Odysseus placed a tutor named Mentor in charge of his son Telemachus).
Many of the world’s most famous entrepreneurs have mentors for their secret weapon, including Bill Gates who was mentored by Warren Buffet. He said since he met Warren his life has changed for the better in every imaginable way. “Melinda and I often find ourselves recounting some gem of wisdom Warren shared with us”.
When Gates first met Warren, he did not expect any friendships as they were from two different spheres; one a technology nerd and the other a financial investor. However, Gates was amazed by Warren’s modest way of talking about what he does.
“He started asking me some questions about the software business and why a small company like Microsoft could expect to |compete with IBM and what were the skill-sets and the pricing. These were amazingly good questions that nobody had ever asked.” |Gates said.
Since then, Gates often sought Warren’s opinion on critical business decisions. Even when he faced any challenges, he would ask himself “What would Warren do?”. Warren has mentored and supported Gates to achieve his dream in setting Gates foundation, the largest transparently-operated private foundation in the world.
Few people in the US are more successful than Bill Gates. But that doesn't mean the 58-year-old billionaire knows everything. There are still important business lessons to be learned by America's richest man — and who better to learn them from than Gates' friend and fellow billionaire Warren Buffett?
Gates outlined the three most important lessons he learned from Buffett. Here are the highlights:
Look At the big picture
When Gates first met Buffett, his immediate instinct was to focus on the surface of his success: picking and investing in stocks. But Gates quickly learned that key to Buffett's success ran much deeper — it's about the big picture of a business. “He has a whole framework for business thinking that is very powerful,” Gates writes.
Instead of focusing on the day-to-day details of the market, Buffett looks at overall growth. “He talks about looking for a company's moat — its competitive advantage — and whether the moat is shrinking or growing,” Gates says. "He says a shareholder has to act as if he owns the entire business, looking at the future profit stream and deciding what it's worth.”
Be honest with shareholders
Buffett famously takes time every year to send a letter to his shareholders, a practice that inspired Gates to start doing the same. While Buffett's letters offer business and investing insights, Gates believes Buffett's candor is what makes them stand out. “ He's been willing to speak frankly and criticise things like stock options and financial derivatives,” Gates says. “He's not afraid to take positions, like his stand on raising taxes on the rich, that run counter to his self-interest.” Gates' key takeaway: transparency is highly appreciated.
Value your time
“No matter how much money you have, you can't buy more time,” Gates reminds us, noting that Buffett understands this better than anyone. Buffett makes an effort to be available to his close advisers and always finds time to personally answer phone calls from them. “He's very generous with his time for the people he trusts,” Gates says.
However, Buffett knows how valuable his time is, and doesn't waste it in useless meetings, Gates says. Buffett prioritises his time and spends it in ways that matter most to him.
Process of mentoring
A mentor will help an executive assess his or her performance, to obtain confidential feedback in individual strengths and weaknesses, and to learn new skills and behaviors. The mentor will help the executive build a valuable network and might also introduce him/her to his own contacts. Mentors take a long term approach to furthering the executive's career. Mentors are likely to be older and more experienced than the executives they mentor.
Contributed by MEYLAPAS BOONSITHVICHIT Director of Coaching, Slingshot Group, [email protected]
