Page 126 - Make Work Great

Growing Your Crystal

around longer taking time to share knowledge with the less expe-
rienced. This, in fact, is one of the mechanisms by which cultural
norms get transferred from person to person in an organization.
Whether the relationship is formal or informal, whether the focus
is technical skills or cultural norms, and whether the interaction is
short term or long term, all good mentorship relationships have one

thing in common: mutual benefit. Not only does the mentee receive
an infusion of knowledge from someone who has been there, but the
mentor has the chance to share his or her experience in a way that

produces specifi c benefi t to someone else and a general benefit to the
broader community of which the mentor is a part. Plus, if you’ve ever
tried to teach anyone anything, you know that in the process of doing
so you’re forced to bring your own expertise to a higher level. In that
regard, becoming a mentor builds skills as effectively as having one.
From the perspective of your workplace network, both your men-
tors and your mentees can make excellent candidates for addition to
your crystal. You’re already involved in a mutually benefi cial relation-
ship, you already have frequent interactions with each other, and you
already discuss workplace topics that lend themselves to overtness
about task and clarity within relationships. As a practical matter,
adding a mentor will be a bit like adding a manager, while adding a
mentee will be a bit like adding an employee.

Mutual Benefit: The Ultimate Value Proposition
Did you notice that the notion of mutual benefi t comes up consis-
tently in our discussion of potential candidates? Whenever you think
about adding someone—an employee, a member of your role set, a
mentor, a mentee, or anyone else—to your crystal, it’s imperative that
you think in terms of mutual benefi t.
Why? Certainly, there are valid reasons rooted in ethics and fair-
ness. You can easily imagine the argument that if you’re going to
be a conscientious creator of culture, you simply must incorporate
an element of mutual benefi t. To do otherwise—to create a culture
of oppression or opportunism—would be irresponsible or “wrong.”

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