Over the years, I feel (or hope) I have unofficially mentored numerous people, whether that be siblings, children, players on teams I have coached, or co-workers.

In fact, I am now involved with Holmes Murphy’s official mentoring program. While it’s in pilot right now, we’re incredibly excited to get it off the ground. Holmes Murphy has always had mentor and mentee relationships; they have just been more organic in nature. This program makes it more “official” and actually has uniform steps to take. What I mean by that is part of our program includes monthly agenda topics for me and my mentee to review.

This month’s topic is comparing a coach with a mentor:

• Coaches measure results, while mentors do not.
• Coaches typically have a standardized approach, while mentors are more personalized.
• Coaches are often fairly specific on what they want done, while mentors are more holistic.
• Coaches (to a large degree) focus on the short-term, while mentors’ goals are long-term.

Nothing I read was earth-shattering or controversial, but as I reflected on it, I realized how often our relationships with our clients hold characteristics of both mentoring and coaching.

• Do we measure results? Absolutely.
• Do we personalize our approach?
• Do we focus on long-term goals and/or short-term goals? 100%, yes.

So, at Holmes Murphy, I like to think that our experts serve as both mentors and coaches, along with being consultants, advocates, and educators for our clients each and every day. And here’s the cool thing, those roles are often reversed with our clients teaching us too. It’s a pretty awesome feeling to have those types of relationships in place!

We also know it’s important to be cognizant of when it is time to be a mentor and when it is time be a coach, as well as when it is time to be mentee or a player on a team.

We’d love to hear about your experience working with Holmes Murphy. Or, if that is the kind of relationship you want from your insurance broker, reach out to us today! We’d love to chat with you.