The Mentor December 2010

New

slet

ter

Network Learning Event

Emotional Intelligence

Members Stories

Welcome

Contents

Welcome 2 NLE November 2010 3 Emotional Intelligence 4 and Mentoring Mentor Tracker 5 Member’s Stories 6 When all else fails…. 8 Responding with 9 resilience Calendar of Events 10 And Mentor Champion Programme NW Leadership 11 Academy

Welcome to the Winter 2010 North West Mentoring Scheme Newsletter. Currently the NHS and wider public sector services are undergoing major change and we are all working in challenging times. With major service redesign and staff being asked to provide more for less we need to increasingly focus on how staff can “up-skill” to deal with the changes ahead. A wealth of literature now demonstrates that Mentoring is key to successful leadership development and should be a core activity associated with increasing confidence and resilience whilst offering measurable return on investment. With this in mind the Scheme will be working with the North West Leadership Academy over the coming months to seek members support in providing feedback and ideas for how the Mentoring, Coaching and Leadership agenda can best be delivered from April 2011. We will be hosting a series of events in January 2011 which will offer the opportunity for you to contribute your thoughts and ideas.

In this issue you will find an excellent article on Emotional Intelligence linked to the recent learning event in Blackpool. We also provide you with Rhianon Washington’s usual opinion piece as well as the opportunity to really find out what being in a mentoring relationship is all about from the very beginning. I would like to thank all members for their continued commitment to the Scheme and wish everybody a happy holiday.

Becci Martin Scheme Manager

Your mentoring relationship presents a useful opportunity to practise feedback skills. Giving and receiving feedback is potentially challenging and taken personally can cause offence, so positive self-image is crucial. Feedback which conflicts with that positive image may lead to cognitive dissonance; an

imbalance in how we see ourselves, creating a convenient pretext for discounting or rationalising such feedback as a defence mechanism to restore our self-image. While positive feedback is gratifying, improved performance doesn’t necessarily follow as innately we are internally driven to do the best we can. Negative feedback may be totally ineffective or even cause performance to deteriorate. Adopting a balanced, objective technique provides the preferred approach.

Constructive feedback should always focus on behaviours rather than the self. Behaviour can be changed. It is important to highlight what went well as an accompaniment to identifying areas for development. The most successful mentoring relationships are those that are open and transparent where feedback is freely given by both mentor and mentee. Achievements are maximised by working in open, feedback-friendly environments, so give it a try!

Constructive Feedback

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The NW Mentoring Scheme held a Network Learning Event focussed on Emotional Intelligence on the 30th November 2010 at Ribby Hall, near Blackpool. 55 Scheme members attended the event which welcomed Rhianon Washington, Scheme Trainer as guest speaker. The network learning event’s aim is to develop the knowledge and skills of members as well as offering opportunities for networking, experiences and meeting new contacts. Becci Martin, Scheme Manager welcomed everyone to the event and introduced the afternoon programme which included information about our Mentor Champion programme and the postcard competitions. Rhianon began her session on Emotional Intelligence and soon the room became energised with members taking part in the fun, practical and interactive activities. Participants found out more about Emotional Intelligence and how to apply these skills to not only their mentoring relationships but within their job roles also. (Please see page 3 for an article about Emotional Intelligence written by Rhianon Washington.) After Rhianon’s fantastic session, Becci went on to close the event by announcing the winners of the postcard competition. Each member received a

Mark wrote ‘As a mentee this has helped and continues to help me manage my career as I make a very difficult transition from a surgeon to a manager. As a mentor, I really enjoy my role for the challenge and enjoyment in watching others develop and making the most of their position and skills.’

Mark Johnston with Rhianon Washington

Suzanne wrote ‘The Scheme has helped me to identify and overcome perceived and imagined barriers. It has empowered me to make positive changes that have proved beneficial for both me and my organisation.’

Suzanne Hughes with Rhianon Washington

The team would like to thank everyone for their support and for attending this event. We hope everyone enjoyed the afternoon and went away feeling motivated and enthusiastic that EI can enhance not only their mentoring but their general communication skills too.

Network Learning Event postcard that asked the question ‘How has the NW Mentoring Scheme helped you?’ The two winners who received a book on Emotional Intelligence were Dr Mark Johnston from NHS Blackpool and Suzanne Hughes from Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

Delegates on the day

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Emotional Intelligence & Mentoring A Quintessential Alliance

In the 20 years or so since the first scientific paper on the subject was published, Emotional Intelligence (EI) has attracted a great deal of attention, particularly from those investigating success at work. Some spectacular assertions have been made concerning its influence on achievement including a claim that cogitative ability or traditional academic intelligence contributes only about 20% towards general life success with 80% being directly attributable to EI.

So what is EI? In 1994, Salovey and Mayer, defined it as an organising framework for categorising abilities relating to understanding, managing and using not only our own feelings but those around us. Exhaustive efforts have been made to identify the specific features, factors, abilities and skills contributing to EI. While there is still no agreement on which components should be included, the most common characteristics can be bracketed broadly into 4 separate but interrelated categories – well-being, self control skills, emotional skills and social skills.

Writers have expressed proficiency in these facets in terms of: • emotional literacy - knowledge and understanding or ones own emotions and how they operate • emotional fitness – trustworthiness, emotional hardiness and flexibility • emotional depth – emotional growth and intensity emotional alchemy – using emotions to identify creative opportunities EI is often measured as a quotient (EQ), similar to the IQ in general intelligence and is very much correlated with success at work. Those with high EQ tend to be better communicators, possess teamwork social skills, build more supportive environments, have greater perceptions, better coping skills, generate more enthusiasm and optimism and are less prone to defensive decision making.

How then do we acquire EI? Most abilities and skills have been subjected to the nature versus nurture argument but whether, and the extent which, it is hereditary, congenital or the product of primary socialisation is largely irrelevant. We are what we are, and the key question is how we can achieve our full potential. Experience gained through work and life generally, together with developmental training, all contribute to refining our work skills. The ‘five domains’ EI model (Daniel Goleman 1995) highlights knowing your own emotions, managing them and

motivating yourself, as well as understanding other people’s emotions and managing them and the relationship. How similar this is to our own developmental mentoring model: encouraging mentees to assume ownership of their professional development, allowing mentors to step back so the mentee can lead the way, creating high levels of self awareness in both parties. Cary Cherniss (The Handbook of Mentoring at Work 2007) contends that EI can significantly influence the quality of mentoring and vice versa, observing that EI of both mentor and mentee influences the quality of mentoring, and that quality mentoring helps people become socially and emotionally competent. Reinforcing EI through the medium of mentoring is feasible by robust compliance with the principles of good practice in developmental mentoring; working together as partners by giving and gaining respect through sincerity and honesty, cultivating awareness by showing empathy and effective listening and encouraging reflection through positive feedback and self analysis.

Mastery of this may take time but every step of the development process hones the skills of both mentor and mentee and yes, you’ve guessed it, your EI too. By Rhianon Washington Scheme Trainer

Mentee: Improvements to Mentor Tracker The NW Mentoring Scheme is happy to announce that the search functions within mentor tracker have been updated! The improved searches will now enable you to get better matches and more results than before. Each mentee can invite up to 3 mentors at a time, but if you have any old invitations that need to be reset, this can easily be done by contacting the Scheme. In the event that a mentor receives your invitation but chooses to decline the invitation, they will choose 'not appointed' and no correspondence will be expected. You can check the status of all your invitations in your profile by going to the 'check my previous invitations'. This will show the status of any invitations you have sent out.

If you need any further support please do not hesitate to contact us here at the Scheme nwmentoring@gmw.nhs.uk and as always we really appreciate any feedback you can provide. Mentor: How to clear outstanding invitations In your usual email system you will receive emails from the prospective mentees via Mentor Tracker advising that you have received an invitation from a potential mentee. It will include your online link so you can log in to mentor tracker to view their details. This invitation will show the contact details of the mentee. You can expect to be one of several Mentors selected by the mentee to hold an ‘Introductory Talk’ or ‘Chemistry Meeting’ as they are often called. Please select ‘Appointed’ once mentoring begins. Otherwise, selecting ‘Not Appointed’ will decline the invitation and free that mentee to search again. Until that invitation is set to 'not appointed' by the mentor they invited, the system holds that invitation which means the mentee cannot search for another mentor if you are unavailable so we really appreciate your prompt

response to their invitation. It may be worth logging in to mentor tracker and to select ‘not appointed’ on any invitations that have not been appointed. Mentor note: We are working hard to ensure our mentees are matched correctly. Mentees can only invite 3 mentors at any one time, we would really appreciate your prompt response to their invitations. If you decide you would like to mentor the mentee, please log in to Mentor Tracker and check the ‘current’ box. If you are not able to mentor that person please still log into Mentor Tracker and clear their invitation by selecting ‘not appointed’ next to their name. Until they are 'not appointed', the system holds that invitation which means the mentee cannot search for another mentor if you are unavailable.

Amanda Nicholls Scheme Administrator

Mentor Tracker

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mentee time as time well spent for me, my department and my job. The mentees chair was more comfortable than I'd thought it would be! By Paul Blacket Medical Engineering Operations Manager at Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

The time flew by, and surprisingly I found that it didn't really matter that Sue didn't know my job and my department inside out. It was the thinking that mattered and the approach to the issues I had. We explored ideas and the solutions that I found myself coming up with, which I doubt would have surfaced, if I'd not been in the 'mentees chair'. Each time I find my journey back along the M6 flies by as my mind races and is full of ideas!

Over the year we have met about four times and chat about a variety of situations, although sometimes we concentrate on one. Once, when I was invited to chair a conference we even chatted over the phone when we couldn't get time to meet up. Mentoring is flexible. We're both busy people and I sometimes need to rearrange sessions at short notice. But to my surprise I find I do it with reluctance as I have come to regard my

Sceptic, cynic and unbeliever seemed to sum me up when the word 'mentor' came within my hearing. For many years I had resisted the mild temptation to find out what this mentoring was all about but then, one day…I was undertaking a Healthcare Scientists Leadership Programme. As part of this programme we were all encouraged to find ourselves a mentor. I reluctantly went on line to find a 'suitable match' and I came across Sue. Still a bit unsure about all this mentoring, we spoke on the phone and agreed a date for our first meeting. Maybe it was just me but the directions of "next to HM Young Offenders Institution" didn't do anything to quell my nerves. I put my best suit on and turned up prompt. I wasn't sure what to expect - I knew the theory about confidentiality, ground rules etc., but what would it be like in practice?

Being in a Mentoring relationship

I always have mixed feelings about the first meeting with a mentee; excitement at a new venture, curiosity about what the issues might be and apprehension that I’ll fail to be of any help. So it’s a great feeling when, at the end, there is a genuine desire to arrange a second session! Our first meetings ranged quite widely but over time we’ve begun to focus more on specific items Paul brings to discuss. Part of the enjoyment of these sessions is not knowing what is coming up next! We don’t meet frequently but allow about 2 – 2 ½ hours each time, and start with a recap. Then we start on the business of the day. What Paul probably doesn’t know is just how much I get out of these sessions myself! It’s a huge confidence booster to know that someone actively seeks your assistance with a situation or piece

of work and believes you will be able to help them find their way through it. I have to try and curb my eagerness to provide answers (my version of course!) and instead ask questions that facilitate him to find his own solutions or devise strategies to try. I always come away energised and buzzing, looking forward to finding out what the outcomes will be, and I get a lot of vicarious pleasure from his successes. And the good news? I get the satisfaction, but don’t have to do the work! This is what I have learned; regardless of whatever else the mentor contributes, the mentee needs to achieve these things for themselves. The key moment? Well, it has to be being nominated for the ‘Mentor Exemplar!’ award. Paul is always kind enough to say how beneficial he finds the sessions, but the

nomination was the icing on the cake! By Sue Ashman Medical Training Co-ordinator at Lancashire Care NHS Foundation Trust.

Mentee

Mentor

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Care Diploma and Mark is mentoring me through this 2 year course which will provide a great foundation to progress to a higher senior management role in the future. By Katie Rimmer Project Manager at Blackpool, Fylde and Wyre NHS Foundation Trust.

very difficult and challenging times. I have been able to discuss very delicate issues in confidence with Mark issues I was unsure how to approach and manage. Mark has always challenged me to think about how I might solve them. I have felt very supported by Mark and we have a very honest, open relationship. More recently, I have been asked to work in a different role as a Project Manager which again is both challenging and exciting but as I have never worked in this kind of role, Mark has continued to be my mentor which has given me firm support in this new role. I personally feel I have developed significantly as a manager and part of this is due to my mentoring sessions with Mark. I am currently undertaking the Managing in Health and Social

My name is Katie and I currently work in the Surgical Division as a Project Manager. I was approached back in December 2009 with the offer of a secondment for 6 months as a Directorate Manager in General Surgery/Anaesthetics and Theatres. This was a very exciting proposal but I was also very nervous and apprehensive about undertaking this role as I felt it was a big step for me to take. However, at the same time, I didn’t want to miss the opportunity of gaining valuable experience in a higher management role. My decision was to accept this offer but realised I would need support and advice and I therefore approached Mark Johnston to act as my mentor during these 6 months. I have found our mentoring sessions very helpful and beneficial and Mark has helped by providing support through some

Moving away from my background as a surgeon into the NHS leadership arena, I struggled to decide on the best career path to follow. I found great solace when I was offered a mentoring session which developed into a relationship with my first mentor. I immediately wanted to give something back to the Scheme and trained as a mentor, feeling that I had some unique views of the ‘NHS world’ that could be well utilised to help others develop. One of the mentees I enjoy this relationship with is Katie, who has sailed across her recent challenging career changes with consummate ease. I have made every effort to provide challenge and guidance as she progresses her career through the unprecedented level of change in her Trust and the NHS as a whole. The challenge that Katie brings

ensures our topics for discussion are fresh, stretching my mentorship skills and pushing me to develop further. Her recent role as a project manager of a major estates project brings a new test for both of us to come up with some innovate way to approach difficult topics and she has managed to overcome some very difficult obstacles. I feel I am able to stretch Katie to critically look at how she approaches certain aspects of work and her overall career management in a way that is helping her achieve her planned development goals. Mentees like Katie make the mentor role thoroughly enjoyable, we both put time and effort into the relationship and the rewards are clear. For me, being a mentor requires an approach that is tailored to the needs of each mentee, through challenge, acting as a sounding board, playing devils advocate (my favourite!),

opening doors or simply passing on my view on an issue to achieve better performance. By Mark Johnston Associate Director of Commissioning Planning & Redesign at NHS Blackpool.

Being in a Mentoring relationship

Mentee

Mentor

A consideration of damaged mentoring relationships. Mentoring generally has enjoyed a favourable press, its merits have been researched and eulogised, and it is easy to become almost evangelical about such a simple yet effective system. However, the rare occasions it breaks down can damage both mentor and mentee as a consequence of the potency of the association. Research into such failing relationships, sometimes referred to evocatively as ‘toxic’ mentoring, is however, sparse and our understanding of it is consequently limited. A variety of symptoms could be described as ‘toxic’; ranging from a mentee consistently cancelling meetings, to a mentor who burdens the mentee with their own problems. Kay and Hinds (A Practical Guide to Mentoring 2007) describe causal factors in toxic mentoring as unreliability, poor preparation and under-developed empathic skills. Their solution conforms to the developmental mentoring model of deep listening, powerful questions and solid contracting. This empathic stance acknowledges that improvement can be achieved through alteration of our perceptions rather than by confronting the cause, which is, once again, consistent with the developmental mentoring model.

Use of the blanket term ‘toxic’ could prove misleading as it encompasses too wide a range of issues, such as lack of commitment, misaligned expectations, poor skills and boundary violations. Undoubtedly, there are many more but, in essence, toxicity is any behaviour that impairs the common intent of the mentoring process. Any resultant sense of personal failure could in itself aggravate the harm inflicted on either or both parties. The good news however, is that the fundamentals of the developmental mentoring model, promoted by the Scheme, are cited in research as the most effective preventative measures. The relationship is strengthened by preserving these crucial principles:

◊ take time together to explore and settle a mutual contract

◊ practise and develop deep listening skills

◊ ask powerful questions before offering advice

◊ provide and maintain constructive feedback to each other

This all helps build and maintain a safe ‘trust’ environment for both mentor and mentee. We should also remain vigilant to the possibility, no matter how remote, that a mentoring relationship may occasionally founder, despite every precau-tion. If this cannot be salvaged

by returning to basics it may ultimately prove necessary to ‘part company’. In this eventuality, it is imperative to remain philosophical about the experience and learn from it, rather that become absorbed in self doubt. Further exploration of the nature of toxicity is required to improve our understanding and generate safeguards. In the new year I will be inviting you by email to contribute towards a study I am pursuing as part of my doctorate in coaching and mentoring. This will take the form of a brief questionnaire and I hope you will give some of your valuable time to participate so that we can add to our professional insight into this unwelcome phenomenon. by Rhianon Washington Scheme Trainer rhianon.washington@gmw.nhs.uk If the subject of this article raises any issues of concern for mentors or mentees, please feel free to contact Rhianon, in confidence.

When all else fails…

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Responding with Resilience Jill Flint-Taylor and Laura Heathcock, Robertson Cooper

What is resilience? “The reality of any career is that unless you are extremely lucky, there will be a point where you will find yourself at the coalface of a major crisis or a momentous challenge. And this can feel very lonely. Resilience in the work place can be described as how you react, adapt and recover to trials and difference between success and failure.” Resilience - the ability to bounce back after setbacks - is fundamental in motivating people and organisations to perform and even flourish in good times and bad. Contrary to popular perception, the good news is that resilience can be developed and improved, whatever your personal starting point. In addition, there are three ways in which leaders and managers can help people to respond in a resilient way. Firstly, improving your own resilience helps you to manage pressure better yourself. Develop a range of coping strategies –don’t rely too heavily on just one or two. Top of the list must be to understand and know yourself – your good and bad points, strengths and weaknesses, how you respond to challenge, your perceptions of risk and change. Work on yourself in the context of developing your ability to understand, challenge and “re-frame” your unhelpful

assumptions or “thinking errors”. To support you, Robertson Cooper ’s FREE i-resilience questionnaire and online resources can be accessed via this link www.robertsoncooper.com/iresilience Secondly, work on yourself in the context of developing your ability to understand, challenge and “re-frame” your unhelpful assumptions or “thinking errors”. Also right up there is looking after your physical condition and maintaining your social support networks. Some people also let their lives become their jobs to the extent that when they do find themselves needing support they have very little to fall back on. Most successful leaders have active social lives outside of the workplace. Thirdly, you have a role to play in helping others to develop their resilience. You can do this mainly by providing them with challenges that are stretching but achievable. By actively managing the negative workplace stressors that are in your control (e.g. work relationship problems) you can improve morale and well-being for those who report to you. This helps your group to respond in a more resilient way to those pressures you can do little about, such as large-scale change and uncertainty. Contact us on 0161 232 4910 to find out more about SHA subsidised support for Trusts in this area.

Confidence

Having the competence, effectiveness in coping with

stressful situations and strong self esteem are inherent to

feeling resilient. The frequency with which individuals

experience positive and negative emotions is

also key.

Social Support

Building good relationships with others and seeking

support can help individuals overcome adverse situations, rather then trying to cope on

their own.

Adaptability

Flexibility and adapting to changing situations which are

beyond our control are essential to maintaining resilience.

Resilient individuals are able to cope well with change and

their recovery from its impact tends to be

quicker.

Purposefulness

Having a clear sense of purpose, clear values, drive

and direction help individuals to persist and achieve in the

face of setbacks.

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Are you a registered Mentor within the NW Mentoring Scheme currently in an NHS role?

Are you interested in enhancing

your facilitation skills?

Would you like to support the sustainability of the regional mentoring programme and

become a valuable resource for your organisation?

If so, then we would like to hear

from you!

To request an application pack please email

emma.porter@gmw.nhs.uk

or contact the Scheme on

0161 772 3608

Mentoring for Innovation, Integration and Leadership

Calendar of

Events January

◊ 11th - NLP Event Stockport ◊ 12th - NLP Event Blackpool ◊ 13th - NLP Event Liverpool ◊ 27th - Mentor Development Day Blackburn

February

◊ 15th - Mentor Champion Day 1

(16th February Day 2) March

◊ 1st - Mentor Champion Day 1 (2nd March Day 2) ◊ 15th - Mentor Champion Day 1 (16th March Day 2) ◊ 8th - Network Learning Event Liverpool ◊ 22nd - Mentor Champion Day 1

(23rd March Day 2) You can book your place on the NLP events by clicking below:

http://www.nwmentoring.nhs.uk/events.html

Could you be a Mentor Champion?

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The NHS North West Leadership Academy hosts a range of Senior Leadership development

programmes and offers a suite of other supportive leadership development initiatives to support

leaders.

Senior Leadership development programmes Coaching Programmes

Executive Mentoring Opportunities Research Toolkits

Masterclasses Newsletters

Currently all NHS Trusts from the North West subscribe to our services. To find out how to access our products and services please visit our website.

www.nwacademy.nhs.uk

Developing Leaders for better health and wellbeing

NW Mentoring Scheme Harrop House

Greater Manchester West Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust

Bury New Road Prestwich Manchester M25 3BL

nwmentoring@gmw.nhs.uk www.nwmentoring.nhs.uk