Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Is "Mentorship" becoming a four letter word like "Innovation"?

Yesterday I was part of a teleconference set up by one of the many start-up incubators that have been springing up like mushrooms all over the country in response to the Government's well-meaning but misguided insistence on investing in the Startup side of the economy without any regard to how one would RETAIN these companies in Canada after they mature.

The truth is that a MAJOR part of any success of any start-up, of many of the careers of our future leaders, and many other important facets of our economy; depends on volunteers who have decided to put something back in this great country of ours. If one paid the standard consulting fees to this army of people all over the country for their endless hours spent in helping those in need of their hard-earned experience, we may well bankrupt certain segments of the economy and halt the progress that our Government so sincerely wants to help forward. It is often taken for granted that such individuals will step forward and do what needs to be done to make the flashy government investment actually SUCCEED on the ground. These folks do what they do for a simple reason or two. They usually want to help the next generation benefit from the mistakes they have made in the past and their joy is seeing that the price they have paid to gain this experience is reduced by the fact that others benefit from the lessons learned for free. Another great driver I have noticed is that they want to connect with the next generation of leaders of society and build trans-generational understanding and friendships in this global, non-linear world we live in today. These folks in my opinion are true mentors. They want little more than the joy of the long-term interaction.

Yesterday's well-intentioned teleconference hit a nerve. The moderator had a need. Because of limited budgets and a pressure to show results he was trying; in the best tradition of Canadan-ism; to be all inclusive in his definition of "mentors". For him anyone offering some free service that could be used by the start-ups that he was incubating, was a mentor. I want to emphasize that I don't FOR A MOMENT seek to demean the services that law firms, accountants, etc. offer for free to such start-ups. It is an equally valuable and vital part of the survival of what the Government likes to portray as THEIR investment in the future. But it is not the same as mentorship in my eyes. It is more of a soft sales pitch not different in detail from any offering of a "free" sample of a drug, or other product (in this case it is a service). On the internet we have a name for this. We call it a "free-mium" offering. Something useful is offered free so that you get hooked on using it and then hopefully you upgrade to the paying premium version.

Admittedly, it is a grey area with many having difficulties in making a clear distinction between what I have described as mentorship and a version of fremium offering. But I want to say that if we can't reserve a name (MENTOR) for that special class of people who really give without ANY expectations then we shortchange the very group to whom we owe so much already. ANY expectation of a business transaction taking place as a result of providing any goods or services is - I would  humbly submit - NOT mentorship. We need to find another name for it and appropriately show our gratitude for that too but it cannot be called mentorship. True mentorship to me is something sacred. Every one of us who have succeeded at something have a mentor to thank for some role in that success and we would not be doing them all a service by mixing them up with other equally valuable but distinct activities.

The latter is no less vital or necessary or desired by companies and young professionals alike. It is, and it should be, acknowledged and valued. I simply submit that it is NOT mentorship. Mixing the two up and blurring the lines is not good for either part of this very vibrant ecosystem of ours.

Your views and comments are always welcome.

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