Mentoring matters for physiotherapists

Mentoring is a relationship-rooted, collaborate effort to facilitate learning - often between both sides. It opens a door for growth with the sharing of knowledge, experiences, skills, reflections, and mistakes made - and conquered. It has a hugely valuable role to play in personal and professional development - and should be at the heart of any pathway for success, fulfilment, and high performance for a physiotherapist. It has been a hugely influential piece to my career development to date – a reservoir that keeps giving back.

Mentoring is important for physiotherapists - for the mentor and the mentee, or protege. The mentor will crystallise thoughts that they see vital, absorb satisfaction from seeing the mentee learn and evolve, strengthen interpersonal soft skills further - and continue to experience different insights and concepts. The mentee will learn how to be more effective and proficient in the field of physiotherapy, add skills, get advice and suggestions, build confidence and support - and an improved level of self-awareness will form.

Generally speaking, a mentor is distinguished as being more experienced as a physiotherapist, due to years working or sometimes even age. But – it is important to recognise that anyone can be a mentor despite differences in age or level of experience and exposure. The ability to reverse mentor always in a professional network is a road often not travelled but well worth going down. 

Revealing new ways to consider things, sharing experiences, and making more fruitful relationships and connections are some of the many positive aspects of having mentoring as part of your continuous professional development plan. A mentor can be a source of information, a cheerleader, a sounding or proof of concept board, or simply someone to clarify thoughts.

A well-oiled mentoring machine will need strategic thinking and organisational planning to foster knowledge transfer and sharing, and to equip all parties with the skills necessary to succeed in relation to future goals. Like a compass, this is an instrument to help us navigate and orientate ourselves as we move forward in our physio career.

Look for a tribe of three mentors to put into your machine – Today!

1. Seek one Yoda – a physiotherapist who can guide you…who has set the standard and who you admire – generally this person will be further on in terms of their career progress and has done things you also would like to do. This person should be more senior and accomplished.
2. Look for a mentor of a similar age and ‘level’ as you – a peer…perhaps someone you attended university or a course with. That person is walking the same path you are now and should be able to understand your perspective on work/life balance, next career moves, and what to focus on in the short-to-midterm.
3. Uncover a third mentor who is just starting off their physio trail – the up and comer who is full of energy and enthusiasm, likely recently graduated, ambitious with a thirst for learning everything in the profession. Understand where this person is looking…for the next big thing, or again another viewpoint.

Curiosity, open communication, and empathy are soft skills central to an effective mentoring programme. ‘The Learning Physiotherapist’ places mentoring at the foundation of its course. Mentoring matters for physiotherapists. The ability to learn from people who have been there, and done it is a significant resource. A vision of this course is also for the students to reverse mentor – to ask the hard questions, raise standards and strive for innovation. And is I said already it is a two-way street. We can all learn from each other.

#learnandgiveback