In the Steering Council we are trying to organise some resources to support mentoring. We have already a proposal from a field expert that will organise some sessions that can provide support to those interested in mentoring people. The sessions will consist of short presentations, participatory exercises, group discussion, and Q&A. There may be potential resources (such as reading lists) that will be shared with participants and later with the rest of the core dev team.
What we want to know from you is the following:
What topics or general aspects of mentoring you would like the trainer to discuss.
Who is interested to participate in these sessions (these are virtual sessions).
Do you prefer to attend these sessions or do you prefer to get resources to consume later at your own pace?
Please, comment in this post so we can better understand what mentors and people interested on mentoring need so we can tailor these potential sessions better.
Of course, feel free to email the steering council if you wish to comment something privately to us.
Thanks a lot!
Representing the Steering Council,
Pablo Galindo Salgado
+1 Count me in as an participant / virtual attendee.
While I donāt come with specific topics to request, pondering the idea of me as a mentor Iāll toss out:
Time management and mentee expectations as a mentor. ā I think concerns about my own availability vs what a good mentee experience should be are one thing that has held me back from seeking to take anyone on in the past.
Count me in as well for the synchronous sessions! Iāve been very grateful to have had many great mentors among all of you, and in recent years I have found mentorship of my own to be perhaps one of, if not the most personally fulfilling and rewarding aspects of being involved in Python and open source. For me, thereās little thatās more emotionally moving and powerful than making a positive impact on someone elseās professional development and personal self-esteem.
As for topics, Iām not totally sure either; I find one of the most critical skills is not just the technical aspects but also building up the menteeās self-confidence and overcoming their insecurities especially mentees who face particular challenges and barriers in that regard (for whom having a good, supportive mentor is also the most critical, and for whom I find the role most rewarding of all).
As for topics, I think that addressing head-on the topic that we discussed at the Core Dev Sprint re: hostile feedback or comments toward a mentee from the wider community.
āmentoring is a people thing, not a technology thingā (my take, at least)
corollary: āmentoring is 95% about helping someone feel comfortableā
what it means to be an insider vs. an outsider
how to be a good listener (this one trick that other OSS projects donāt want you to know about)
āevery mentoring experience is differentā [1]
how to figure out the best way to mentor each individual
how to recognize the needs/goals of a mentee and adapt to them
how to respond when a mentee says āIām nervousā, āIām scaredā, or āIām anxiousā
what to do if you start feeling nervous, scared, or anxious when mentoring
what core devs can do to support each other as mentors
what to do when you run out of steam as a mentor
what to do when you run out of time for mentoring
what to do when a mentee bails out [2]
incl. how to not let the disappointment derail you
āmentoring is easier than it soundsā
what is the real impact of mentoring
Another that may or may not be a good fit: why having a diverse group matters and how we can get there through mentoring.
[1] Some benefit from weekly meetings, some more or less often, and some would rather not meet directly at all but rather interact via messaging or the tracker. Some mostly just need encouragement and others especially benefit from hands-on collaboration. Some want to try new things and some donāt. Some will open up right away and some wonāt ever open up (and thatās okay).
[2] For example, find out why (there are many possible reasons). Address concerns. Preserve a positive, welcoming relationship.
This is just so, so true. And honestly, its the part I find most rewarding about mentoring, since Iāve always struggled with a lot of anxiety, insecurity and imposter syndrome, and honestly Iāve been a lot luckier than most people due to having resources, privilege and a support network.
For this on both sides of the equation Iāve found the key thing is to to be vulnerable and bring yourself down to earth with your mentee, which helps them connect with you as a mentor and a person, feel more comfortable and open up to you more in turn, which leads to a virtuous cycle.
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