by Douglas Metcalfe-White

The Willamette Valley Chapter has been sponsoring a Mentoring program for three years. If you haven't taken advantage of the opportunity to participate as a mentor, you are missing out on one of the most satisfying experiences of your career.

The Mentoring program gives you the opportunity to put your experience to work guiding those who are just getting started in technical communication or helping less experienced technical communicators solve the challenges they face in their careers. Being a mentor gives you the opportunity to contribute to your profession by helping less experienced communicators become more confident and better able to perform well in the workplace. Which, in turn, enhances the reputation of technical communications as a profession.

As a mentor, you have the opportunity to meet people who are enthused about, and committed to, technical communication. That enthusiasm can rub off on you.

We all have busy schedules. Mentoring doesn't require a lot of time. You and your protégé can meet as often as you wish. It depends on your protégé's needs and what you think you can offer. You might meet with your protégé once a month, once a week, or just once. You can meet face-to-face or conduct your mentoring by email or over the phone. If you decide to meet face-to-face, a meeting might last a half an hour or three hours. You might meet for coffee or for lunch. You might meet before a chapter meeting, or at your protégé's home, or at yours. Meeting arrangements are completely between you and your protégé.

Some mentors have made lasting friends and still meet with their protégés long after the official mentoring term is over. I still occasionally meet with a couple of my first protégés and that was three years ago.

If you are a manager, you may want to become a mentor. In addition to all of the other benefits, you might find someone you want to hire. Encourage your employees to mentor someone. Not only will your group become better known in the community, but your writers might enjoy renewed excitement about their careers.

In the final evaluation, I, and all of the mentors to whom I have spoken, have found a great deal of personal satisfaction in taking part in the Mentoring program. We are proud to see our protégés succeed in their careers. Along the way, we have made new friends. We have been encouraged by our protégés and a little of their enthusiasm has rubbed off on us. If you haven't mentored someone, I encourage you to take advantage of the Mentoring program. If you don't, you are missing out.

To find out more about the Willamette Valley chapter's Mentoring program, see the Mentoring page of the chapter's Web site at www.stcwvc.org/membership/mentor.htm.

Douglas Metcalfe-White can be reached at dougmw1@yahoo.com.