Bad Mentoring Models: Willie the Unwilling

This week I am going to write about some people that you might have to deal with at work, folks who might be designated or see themselves as mentors but who you should do your best to avoid or overcome in order to keep your hands on the wheel of your career. This week I’m focusing on one category that I’ll call the Missing Mentors.

Willie the Unwilling

Willie might have been assigned to you from up above, from corporate or HR, as part of a formal mentoring program that seemed like a good idea at the time. Willie is really someone who doesn’t want to be part of the program. If you can find Willie, they might give you advice or answer your questions but given a choice, they wouldn’t even be part of the plan. They’d be happy if you just kept walking.

Have you had to deal with Willie the Unwilling or somebody like that, meant to mentor but falling short of your needs?

Come back tomorrow for another example and at the end of the week I’ll write about how to deal with these missing mentors.

What do you think?

See you tomorrow!

#mentoring #badmentors