There are many communication skills that can help you to advance your professional and personal goals. Prior to meeting with your mentor:

• Read the article by Indeed on 4 Different Ways to Communicate in the Workplace then take an inventory of your strengths and weaknesses.
• Reflect upon the following for each of the 4 dimensions discussed in the article (verbal, non-verbal, visual, written) : 
  • What are your top interpersonal skills?
  • What could you be doing better?

• How have your interpersonal skills factored into your success? Can you think of a time or situation where your skills set you apart or allowed you to advance academically or professionally? 
• Are there particular resources, tools, or role models that you have used to guide your communication practices and help you to develop your own communication style?
• What’s one of the most challenging conversations you remember having?
• What have you learned about being an effective communicator in a team or organization?
• Focusing on one of the 4 ways of communication (verbal, non-verbal, visual, written), what do you consider as the top 5 Do’s and Don’ts?

REMINDER: During this meeting, you must discuss a time to schedule Meeting 2, please refer to the Timeline below for the date for Meeting 2 and work with each other to schedule time for Meeting 2 on the date indicated in the Timeline item: Meeting Two – Conversation Starters.

• Complete the short communication skills self-assessment in Part 1 of the Boosting Your Professional Communication Skills Worksheet. 
  • What are your top interpersonal skills?
  • What could you be doing better?
  • Retain a copy of the skills assessment for your records.
• Write (and upload) a professional-quality email/letter to your mentor in which you communicate the following (at minimum):
  • Your top interpersonal skills;
  • What you could be doing better;
  • What skills you would like to focus on at your next meeting;
  • Your appreciation for your mentor’s support.

• What feedback can the mentor offer on your communication skills? What do they observe as your areas of strength? Areas to target for improvement?
• What strengths are you wanting to build upon? What challenges are you wanting to overcome?
• Where do you think you can make the most progress? 
• What suggestions do you have for asking for feedback from peers and supervisors? How do you integrate feedback into your work performance?
• How do you assess the development of these skills over time to ensure efforts to improve are working?

REMINDER: During this meeting, you must discuss a time to schedule Meeting 3, please refer to the Timeline below for the date for Meeting 3 and work with each other to schedule time for Meeting 3 on the date indicated in the Timeline item: Meeting Three – Conversation Starters.

Revisit the Boosting Your Professional Communication Skills Worksheet and draft a plan for improving one communication skill (Part 2).

In a debrief format, upload a thank you letter/email highlighting key take-aways from your mentoring experience and three action steps you are planning to take to enhance your professional communication skills over the next year. Explain how these steps will contribute to your professional development. Be sure to include a copy of the action plan from your Boosting Your Professional Communication Skills Worksheet!

• What feedback can you the Mentor offer on the Final Deliverable?
• What questions do you the Mentee have for the Mentor?
• What are the next steps in continuing to develop the knowledge, skills, strategies, etc. you’ve been working on?

Mentors and Mentees please use the following link to complete the Post-Engagement Survey