In ancient Greece, Odysseus entrusted his friend Mentor with the education of his son. Since that time, mentoring has become the art of sharing of ourselves and being open to the wisdom of others. As a trainer, it is often our charge to “impart knowledge” or new skills. But as trainers, if we are to be the guide on the side and not the sage on the stage, mentoring can play a key role in how we perceive ourselves.

In the book, Mentoring: The Tao of Giving and Receiving Wisdom, Chungliang Al Huang and Jerry Lynch show us how the concept of mentoring is an essential tool in all our relationships. This is an interactive process based on the balanced give and take so that we can both teach and learn from one another. In the participant-centered classroom, this dynamic interaction is fostered and encouraged. In a lecture-based classroom, there is only one way communication. The teacher has little opportunity to learn from the participants.

In the participant-centered classroom, both the trainer and the participant benefit from the exchange of ideas, support and goal setting. “When we need to learn, we become open to receiving; once we have learned, we immediately become open to giving. This is the never-ending process of Tao mentoring.” As with Pike’s 5^th law, it is only when our students are able to teach another the lessons they have learned from us, that we know learning has taken place.

“All good mentors (giving, teaching) are continually open to being mentored (receiving, learning). To be a good teacher, one must be a good student. To be a good student, one must learn well what he or she will teach.”  Knowing your subject well, teaching from experience, acknowledging the experience in the room, allowing for group sharing of ideas and remaining open to learning from your audience are building blocks to a sound mentoring relationship.