Reverse Mentoring

Hey Danny,
great article! When I was a young boy, i went to an older uncle for help and advice. In fact, it was that very uncle that helped my passion for healt, fitness and nutrition grow, and today I own several of my own center. I think about him a lot and how he instilled the importance of healthy living on me, especially when I am counseling one of my clients. However, I never thought about partnering with the older generation in this way. It's truly brilliant, because where one is weak the other is strong and vice versa. It's really business 101...isn't It? Thanks for the idea, I gotta go call my uncle now.

Just had a younger employee at my bank claim that his generation (he is 25) is not lazy but rather they are uninspired because nothing is being taught to him. Felt college was a scam because there was no teaching about success. I have to agree with him there. I immediately took the chance to see if he would be interested in learning about Internet marketing from me and he was. That was fun.

Just to be clear, I am not a grandpa yet. Still many years before that happens. I can, however, try to impart whatever wisdom I have picked up on the way.

This is the real local factor that is being hurt to some degree by social media. There are people in our backyards that we can have a meal or drink with and help them in a very important way. I have found that if I ask the following question at least once a day something very cool happens: How can I serve you today?

Great post Danny. Keep up the great work.

Younger people know social media but don’t have business experience. Older people have that business experience but don’t necessarily have the social media knowledge.
via uberVU

I think it can start as simple as that and grow from there. We can all learn a lot from each other and the sharing of knowledge is a great thing.

Allie Osmar has started a mentorship program along these lines that appears to be going over well with people.

I like the way you think Danny :)

It can be as simple as that and it should be, though often the corporate world will complicate things with endless "decision by committee".

Maybe the idea could be started with smaller, individual businesses, "mom and pop" establishments that could use the expertise and experience of an older individual or the tech savvy of the younger generation (though don't count out all those over 50 as technically challenged!). Sometimes a grassroots movement is that first step to global implementation.

It is a little like S.C.O.R.E., an organization I have taken advantage of on numerous occasions. S.C.O.R.E. a group of retired experts in various fields and their advice is free. I even found a food chemist there! However, it is a government organization and not geared towards deeper involvement.

It would be interesting to bring this up at the next AgeOp and see if a business model could be created for "The Mentor Marketplace - Putting people of all ages and ideas of all people together for a new tomorrow" or some such marketing speak like that.

Danny, this is a simple, yet great idea! I have always wanted a mentor in the business world...but they were rare, very rare. I think in the business world (especially in the US) there's an inherent fear that "if I share my knowledge, you'll take my job." And that will be hard to shake. So the idea of bringing mentors in to the workplace is ingenious. I teach "Writing for PR & Social Media" at an undergraduate level (18-21) and they don't see the connection between SM and business. Mainly because they don't call it "social media." For them it's a way to connect with friends, make fun of people, post pix, etc. Try changing that mindset to a business mindset...it's hard. It's like trying to convince them a playground can be used for business meeting. ;-)

Well said Danny. All professionals, young and old, have something to learn from each other. A lot of experienced professionals are tightly tied to tradition and find it difficult to grasp new concepts. Younger professionals can bring a lot of new ideas to the table that older ones may not think of. At the same token, experienced professionals have a lot to offer based on their...well, experience. They've learned from mistakes that young professionals haven't had the privilege of making. Everyone has something to benefit from cooperation.

I spoke about similar topics a little bit more if you want to check it out...

http://davidspinks.com/2009/01/10/dont-pass-the-torch-just-share-the-light/

http://davidspinks.com/2009/01/12/how-to-set-up-a-mentorship/

I'm a big advocate of mentoring the next generation of PR pros but I have to tell you...I've learned much more from them! This speaks directly to your reverse mentoring approach and I think it is brilliant. I think about all of the business professionals who come to me every day asking for some guidance and advice about social media. Many of these folks are age 40+ and view social media as "a place for kids," "not a place for business," & 20 other misconceptions they have about this new space. My biggest question about this proposal, "would C-level executives put their egos aside to accept being mentored by a twentysomething??"

Great conversation-starter, Danny!

You're a perfect example of how it does work, Edward - after all, won't you learn quicker from someone you respect?

And my bad - I should have said "grandparents" instead :)

I think it is that simple; we all have something to share, we just need to put down our preconceived notions of each other, as your blog points out. For me it's always been my grandmother, I talk to her almost every week and she lives in Spain! But her years of knowledge and her uncritical ear makes her a great source to learn from and talk to.

And guess who is teaching her about Facebook?