1-on-1 Mentoring

Having 1-on-1 access to TradersArmy mentors take you well beyond what could ever be acquired from reading books, attending hotel seminars, or scouring the internet for information and has proven to be the most instrumental part of all trading education for serious traders looking to further develop the skill and art of trading.


Mentoring Makes a Difference

Mentorship is a buzzword these days. It seems to have different meanings for different people. Some consider it a form of counseling, communicating, or learning by example from someone usually senior to you, while others call it leadership. Whatever you want to call it, it is something that has proven to be instrumental to any personal or professional development; however, there seems to be some mystery surrounding mentorship. Maybe that is due to its different meanings; therefore, people are unclear about its role. Here, we will try to take some of the mystique out of mentoring by reviewing the basics. It will address what mentoring is, why should TradersArmy have a mentoring program, who should be responsible for mentoring, when to mentor, where mentoring can take place, and how to mentor someone.

What is Mentoring?

Mentoring is the presence of caring individuals who provide support, advice, friendship, reinforcement, and constructive examples to help others succeed. Mentoring can mean the difference between success and failure. A mentor is a person of greater knowledge or wisdoms who shares this experience to help develop abilities of those junior to them, also called protégés. Mentoring encourages people by promoting communication, and personal and professional development. A mentor is an individual who advises and challenges you to do your best on both a personal and professional level. Everyone needs a mentor, and leadership is where mentoring starts.

A good mentor will use all available resources. They recognize the value of all members in their community and understand that no one can accomplish their job alone. They have reached their level of leadership by learning from others and usually desire to teach and provide these same opportunities to those who are willing to learn, their protégés. Mentoring is about helping people grow and think for themselves. It’s an opportunity to connect with the past and contribute to the future.

Why Mentor?

Mentoring should take place, because everyone gains when there is a healthy exchange of information. Not only does the mentor and protégé benefit from this exchange of ideas and information, but also TradersArmy as an organization will benefit greatly. As indicated by an ancient Chinese proverb:

“If you want one year of prosperity, grow grain,
If you want ten years of prosperity, grow trees,
If you want one hundred years of prosperity, grow people.”


Leaders realize those junior to them are watching and learning from them even if it is at a distance; however, with the amount of information and knowledge available to everyone, “Distance learning” will never be as beneficial as 1-on-1 mentoring.

If left to learn at a distance, protégés will apply their perceptions of what they see and hear to the issues in their personal and professional lives. They will have to decide for themselves the best way to handle different situations. The danger with this is “their perception” may not be reality, because they may not have all the facts. Therefore, open communication with their mentors will ensure the right lessons are being learned and correct information is being disseminated. It is important that protégés learn the art of decision-making.

Who should Mentor?

It is important to remember the senior traders of an organization are responsible for the development of those junior to them. There are many traders in our community, and all have varied experiences. Therefore, it should not be just the senior traders who are responsible for mentoring, but each person in the community should have a role in mentoring. No one should feel like they are “going it alone,” and by developing this atmosphere of interaction between all community members, a sense of belonging to something special should develop. This can only result in a stronger and better TradersArmy.

Whereas mentoring tends to be directed at teaching the junior trader, it actually can and should extend to everyone within the community. Because everyone that enters the financial markets, regardless of past experience or education, needs helpful guidance and assistance in order to perform to the best of their abilities, all community members have valuable experiences that should be past on to the younger generations. We can learn not only what to do but what not to do through this interaction.

When to Mentor

One of the questions we get a lot is, “when should 1-on-1 mentoring come in as a resource for me?” Our response, “I would argue that to some extent, mentoring is already taking place without “credit” being given to the mentor”.
For instance, there is a group of junior traders that are almost accidentally being mentored on a daily basis as they are interacting on our social platforms with senior traders, and other junior traders, and especially tuning in to our Live Trading Rooms each day. These junior traders observe leadership in action. They learn how decisions are made and what questions to ask. Each of these resources to some extent offer mentoring, either formally or informally. The senior traders need to recognize this and take advantage of it by allowing the protégé to ask questions and discuss issues when the opportunity avails itself. These experiences alone are very valuable to the junior traders but will eventually benefit the TradersArmy as well.

Mentoring occurs all the time. Each time you have a discussion with another active investor, at a minimum, informal mentoring is taking place as you are providing insight based on your own experiences. Therefore, it is imperative that information provided is thoughtful and accurate.

Whether a mentor sets a regular time on their schedule daily, weekly, or monthly is not as important as being accessible and prepared to listen and respond to their protégé when needed. Mentoring is not effortless, and time will be required. Both parties must be active participants and work out a schedule that is best for both of them.

Where is the best place to Mentor?

In some cases, in-person, shoulder-to-shoulder mentoring could be beneficial but would often times require extra travel expenses that may just not be in the budget. Today’s ever changing technology allows the mentor to work with the protégé in an online, interactive environment using web-based meeting solutions. This game-changing technology just cut the cost of all travel expenses and reduces the stress that can be associated with travel. It also allows the protégé to stay in the comfort of their own home with their family while building their skills and mastering the art of trading.

How to Mentor

It is important to understand that the development of protégés is an ongoing process for everyone. Mentors should relate personal and professional experiences to protégés. They should practice positive communication skills and ensure protégés do the same.

No two protégé’s are alike in their goals, financial situation, level of knowledge and skill. Therefore, every 1-on-1 mentoring session would be unique and customized to fit the individual’s needs.

Conclusion

Mentors are not expected to have all the answers. Sometimes just listening attentively is all people need, but mentoring can mean the difference between success and failure. Mentoring is a fundamental responsibility of all senior traders at TradersArmy. It helps protégés reach their full potential, thereby enhancing the overall professionalism of the entire TradersArmy community.

By understanding the “what, why, who, when, where, and how” of mentoring there should be no mystery about providing assistance to junior traders around the world. If TradersArmy is to strive to be the best in the world, it not only needs a superior trading system but also traders who are advanced in their knowledge and skills, because caring mentors took the time to listen, learn, and advise to the best of their abilities.