Can mentoring teens in the workplace help build career paths?

Yes

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by Drew Woodson

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For a teenager who has never worn a tie or seen the inside of an office building, many of the middle class jobs that would lead a teenager out of poverty seem to belong to an alien world. A mentoring relationship gives those teens access to that alien world and begins to demystify potential careers.

Much of what we call common sense is not common at all. Rather, it is learned knowledge that comes from experience and instruction. If we want teenagers to use common sense, we should invest the time and effort necessary to teach them those many small behaviors. Teenagers who have parents who work in careers may never realize the benefit those role models give them. They know what it is like to see their parents wake up everyday, dress in professional clothes, and walk out the door to work a full day. While it may seem a small feat, such small behaviors make up the script that teenagers will try to follow once they are adults.

Among the many methods of character instruction that have been documented over the years, direct instruction is one of the least effective. This will surprise no one who has ever told a teenager what to do, only to watch him do the opposite. Good character comes from good practice, from engaging in responsible behavior daily and seeing positive reactions in others. Mentoring teens in the workplace gives teens opportunities to take on responsibility, to complete tasks, and to receive positive reinforcement.

A mentoring relationship inserts a caring adult into a teens life. This relationship has positive affect on a teens grades, their mood, and their tendency to take risks. A teenager who knows someonewill notice if they begin to slip into bad habits is much less likely to slip.

Motivation hinges on three conditions. A teenager must feel: that a task is worth doing, that they are well supported in that task, and that a task is possible. When it comes to making the grades that lead to good careers, a mentoring relationship can provide all three. Suddenly, math is no longer a purposeless worksheet of irrelevant figures. It is a stepping stone on an understandable path, a path that leads to a career.

Those careers that suffer from a chronic lack of interest and therefore struggle to fill positions with qualified workers could benefit from exposing teenagers to those careers. Science and technology jobs in particular can benefit by bringing teenagers into the workplace and exciting them about the possibilities in those fields.

Mentoring teens in the workplace is about mutual benefit. Teens learn about the workplace, and mentors begin to cultivate a new workforce.

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