Introduction

History has shown that human beings, like trees in a forest, tend to thrive best when they grow in the presence of those who have gone before them. In Greek mythology, Athena, the goddess of wisdom, assumed the form of Mentor to look after and guide Telemachus, son of Odysseus, who had left home to fight in the Trojan war. The account of Mentor in The Odyssey points to several conclusions about the activity which bears Mentor’s name. First, mentoring is an intentional process. Second, mentoring is a nurturing process that fosters the development of the mentee towards full potential. Third, mentoring is an insightful process in which the wisdom of the mentor is acquired and applied by the beneficiary.

The Mentoring definition is …the process where the leader offers guidance and support to help the understanding of another. Mentoring is vital to delegating and to a range of other management situations – e.g. team building, development of people, and managing change.

So, there are many similarities between coaching and mentoring. Mentoring, particularly in its traditional sense, enables an individual to follow in the path of an older and wiser colleague who can pass on knowledge, experience, and open doors to otherwise out-of-reach opportunities. Coaching, on the other hand, can compass both managerial coaching and a less-directive approach, which looks to promote self-discovery/self-actualisation.

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