THE HUMAN ERROR
MENTORING BY GORDON DUPONT
Mentoring is not a new phenomenon. It was practiced by the Greeks hundreds of years B.C. Mentor in fact was a person’s name in the works of the Greek philosopher Homer, who with the help of a Greek goddess “mentored” a king’s son. Just what is a mentor and mentoring? An explanation that
I like says that a mentor is an experienced and trusted advisor who helps others solve problems rather than give direction. Mentoring is the act of providing that help. Mentoring, done right, can be a powerful Safety tool. Most of us have mentored and been mentored to some degree at points of our lives. When we were younger, mentors may have been role models to us and heavily influenced what and who we are today. A mentor is not a teacher, although he or she may teach. He or she is much more than a teacher. Conversely, a teacher is not a mentor — although there are some who take on this role as well and have changed young lives for the better. Those few that do are always remembered by the students, as they influenced them to strive to their full potential.
In his early teenage years, our son was not doing well in
school. It appeared that his head teacher didn’t seem to care what the students did and put in minimum effort to teach them even the basics. For example, when it came to writing, the teacher didn’t care where the students started a written letter as long as it got done. As a result, our son, except for his signature, prints even to this day. His writing doesn’t flow if he starts to write certain letters the wrong way. One of his friends from that class is unable to even read to this day. Still everyone in the class passed each year. Come high school we took the big step to send him to a
private school run by the Christian Brothers even though it was costly, and we had to now drive him to the school. He dreaded the thought of having to go to this new school while his classmates and friends went to a public high school. Even under the threat of running away he was convinced
to very reluctantly go for that dreaded first day that he anticipated would be a “hell day” and the start of “let’s have some fun bullying the new kid like they did us when we started high school.” However, all the new students were, in his words, herded into the gym where all the school’s students were waiting. There, to their great surprise they were welcomed as the future graduating “Class of 1988.” Then with much ceremony they were knighted with a real sword touch on each shoulder while the students cheered and he became Sir Jason of the “Class of 1988.” A senior student stood beside him during this ceremony and was assigned to
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him. The senior’s job was to be his mentor who he could go to with any problem. He came home with a huge smile on his face and I’m pleased to say that he graduated in the Class of 1988, while not one of his former classmates completed high school. He, in turn, was a mentor for a new student in his senior year and the most valuable lessons he learned in those school years were not in the curriculum, but in the fellowship of helping his fellow man. Those lessons have stood him well over the years. Many companies have come to realize that employees
are much more than a number on a payroll list. In one large company, the vice president of Safety himself welcomed the new employee and personally showed him around the company facility, introducing him to every employee they met while imparting on him the importance of Safety in that company. He was also told that if at any time he had a Safety concern that was not being addressed, he was to come and see that VP himself. Thus, the VP had set himself up to be a mentor, at least where Safety was concerned. I have little doubt that that walk and one-on-one talk went a long way in improving Safety within that company. We’ll never know how many accidents, if any, it prevented or even lives saved by that simple gesture. I would like to suggest that companies look at formalizing a mentor program with all new employees as a means to improving Safety within their organization. While the degree of formalizing would depend on the size of the company and the number of new employees they hire on a regular basis, at least consider taking the time to provide initial training that includes the way Safety things are done around here and who to approach if a question or concern arises. The sooner the new employee feels he or she is part of the team and is free to speak out, the Safer the organization is. Choosing a successful mentor is not an easy task. The
following are some of the requirements that person should possess.
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