Okay, so you realise that change is needed. You may have identified problems at an individual level or at an organisational level. Ask yourself: is it a question of soft skill development, or hard skill development?
Hard Skills refers to the skills which a person must possess to perform a specific kind of job. For example: To get the job of the programmer, a person needs to have coding skills. On the other hand, a teacher requires presentation skills, Microsoft office skills, and classroom management etc...
Soft Skills are not associated with a particular job, rather it includes the basic skills, i.e, communication skills, leadership skills, work ethics, professional skills, adaptive skills, etc. as it determines the ability of the candidate to gel up in the working environment. Emotional intelligence is part of this suite of skills.
Mentoring is probably more suited to developing hard skills. An expert with experience of your issue will usually guide you through some training and/or strategies to improve these skills. The mentee takes advice, watches demonstrations, listens to stories of the mentors experience.
Traditional mentoring is often the domain of a more experienced colleague charged with looking after a new colleague, showing them the ropes, helping them to understand 'how things are done around here' aka organisational culture. This is part of one's induction. Mentoring is also used to train employees as part of organisational strategy.
Coaching is more suited to developing soft skills. It is less directive, more reflective. The coachee is empowered to develop their own strategy, develop their own plan, and try different approaches.
Coaching requires greater skill than mentoring. Learning how to avoid becoming an advice monster' but instead becoming a sounding board and skilled questioner, is a key difference.
Next time:
Part 2: Coach or Mentor-the best approach to address your needs.
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