Why mentoring matters in shipping

Mentoring is about supporting someone as they find their own path, not giving them all the answers, explains Maria Kostala, Claims Executive at Shipowners Claims Bureau (Hellas) / the American P&I Club.

There are many ways to be on someone’s side when they want to explore and find their way. Sometimes it is by listening to them, to their questions, to their musings, their thoughts and dreams

If they ask, you can help them by giving them a hint to find the direction(s) to their path(s), their answers. Sometimes it is by opening a door – or many. And sometimes, perhaps most importantly, it is simply by saying: “I have been where you are, I can relate to and understand you.”

And then, you can take them with you by telling them your story, showing your compass; what you have experienced, what you have learnt, what you value and cherish the most based on your steps, so that they can make their own steps and take the compass.

This is, to me, the essence of mentoring. Sharing the compass.

I have had the privilege of being both a mentee and a mentor, and I very much value and appreciate this process of sharing knowledge, experience and, perhaps, a little bit of courage.

As a mentee, it is very touching to see someone investing their time in you. Someone who does not have to, but chooses to listen, advise, challenge and encourage you.

As a mentor, the feeling is surprisingly similar, but from the other side of the road: it is moving to see someone trusting you enough to share their questions, ambitions and uncertainties, to be transparent and then be willing to be guided through a common experience.

Mentoring is not about having all the answers. Thankfully, because otherwise many of us would have had to decline the role!

Mentoring is about sharing what you know, including the lessons you have learnt the hard way. It is about helping another person build confidence, resilience and soft skills, while giving them the space to form their own judgment, make and support their choices, find their solutions and overall, their voice.

A good mentor does not intend to create a copy of themselves. They assist and witness someone else becoming more confidently themselves.

And this is why mentoring matters for the next generation.

For a young person, the professional world can sometimes seem like a map with too many roads and very few signs. Especially in an industry such as shipping, where there are countless opportunities but not all of them are visible from the outside. And then, a compass is required.

When we speak about a maritime career, from the outside, the first image that often comes to mind is this of a seafarer. However, the maritime world is much broader. There are vessel owners, ship managers, charterers, naval architects, engineers, surveyors, insurers, lawyers, arbitrators, claims specialists, brokers, financiers, port professionals, agents, academics, consultants, technology and sustainability specialists, cargo experts, recovery companies, risk consultants, crisis management specialists, and many other professions.

There are careers at sea and careers ashore; careers that are highly technical and others that are built around negotiation, analysis, communication or problem-solving.

For someone who does not have a person in their close environment to show and, especially, explain these possibilities, mentoring can make an enormous difference, a great impact. A simple conversation with someone working in the industry may be enough to make a previously invisible career path suddenly appear on the map.

Turning to the working world, then, mentoring can assist again. By working on someone’s soft skills, such as communication, articulation, punctuality and resilience.

By sharing common experiences on how to navigate the work environment, how to become a good team member and how to be a fair leader, how to solve problems, how to think creatively and take that one step further towards progress, and how to go the extra mile to offer more to your company, colleagues and team.

Mentoring isn’t always formal. It can happen naturally between colleagues, friends, teachers and students, family members, or simply between two people who share the same professional interest. On the other hand, there are also many organizations and initiatives that facilitate structured mentoring schemes, matching mentors and mentees according to their background, skills, interests and goals. Both models have value.

Both have impact. What matters is the willingness to share, from both ends, and the willingness to trust, again from both ends.

In shipping, this has a particular significance. It is an industry with traditions, yet also one that is constantly evolving.  It is not uncommon for someone, particularly in Greece, to enter the sector because their family, parents or grandparents were already involved in it.

In such cases, mentoring may not come with a formal title or programme. It may happen around the dinner table or during an ordinary conversation about work.

This was certainly the case for me. My father would often talk about claims and surveys, about trips to build or repair vessels, and about the practical issues that came up along the way. By listening to him, I gradually understood that there is rarely only one way to solve a problem.

You look at the facts, try to understand what can be done, and work towards a solution. The above influenced the way I approach things today.

Looking back, those everyday conversations were a form of mentoring. There was no programme, no matching process and certainly no mentoring handbook. There was simply experience being shared with the next generation.

And perhaps this is the most important point.

Mentoring is not about creating a path for someone. It is about helping them discover their own. By sharing the compass.

Those of us who have benefited from mentoring want to continue the chain. We received knowledge, experiences and lessons from those before us, and at some point, we have the opportunity and even the responsibility to pass them on to the next generation.

This does not require extraordinary achievements. It requires time, attention and interest.

A young person may not remember every conversation we had or tip we exchanged. They may even disagree with some of them, and that is perfectly fine. Although, they may remember that someone believed in them. Someone discussed with them a possibility they had not considered before. Someone showed up for them.

That can be enough to change a career, a mindset or even a life.

The belief in the power of showing up for the next generation is also at the heart of the American P&I Club’s commitment to mentoring and inspiring; this is both at an in-house level, as part of our organization’s mentoring and “open door” policy, where managers make themselves available to discuss, listen and collaborate, and at an industry level, through our participation in various educational and youth-focused programs.

The American Club creates opportunities to engage directly with our professionals, gaining insights into different careers, experiences and perspectives. These encounters can help the next generation broaden their horizons, discover possibilities they may not have considered, and, perhaps most importantly, see that there are people willing to invest their time, experience and encouragement in their future.

So, whether or not you have had a mentor who helped you along the way, consider sharing your experience with someone else, through your company or individually, as part of a formal program or simply through a spontaneous conversation.

If you are already in a position to guide a younger professional, make the time. And if you are at the beginning of your own journey, do not hesitate to ask questions and seek people whose path can help you navigate.

The maritime industry has always been about navigating. Perhaps mentoring is one of the simplest ways we can help the next generation do exactly that, and find their way.

We do not have to draw their entire route. Sometimes, we just need to share the compass.

source : safety4sea