Getting by With a Little Help from Your Friends: A Model for Peer Mentoring Groups

Felicity WK Harper, PhD, and Lara Traeger, PhD, Cancer SIG members

For the last 10 years, the Cancer SIG Education and Training Committee has developed offered a range of career development opportunities for members. From webinars to conference panels to preconference workshops, the Committee has offered tips on mentoring, career development, grant writing, and work-life balance.

Our newest initiative focuses on developing opportunities for peer mentoring. While professional mentors offer critical career and research advice, peer mentoring can offer a wealth of benefits including practical advice, support, and information.

The idea for a peer mentoring program came out of a discussion at an annual conference about the limited number of year-round mentoring opportunities. In an attempt to bridge that gap, we piloted a peer mentoring group with a very simple goal: monthly phone calls with a group of 8-10 people with a common interest. The initial test group was composed of 8 women who were mid-career (in addition to the authors, members were: Catherine Alfano, Kristi Graves, Aimee James, Shelby Langer, Elyse Park, and Melinda Stolley). To maximize the feasibility, the group was designed to take no more than an hour once month, and a moderator was nominated to coordinate the call. Each call has a set agenda: 5-min check-in, pre-selected topic generated by the group’s interests, and 5-min check out to set monthly intentions.

Topics have included directed readings (e.g., “Energy Management,” “Essentialism”) and guest speakers as well as focus on specific issues such as increasing productivity, negotiating promotions, balancing work and life, developing “reach” goals, redefining productivity, and setting research priorities.

At the end of each group, members set an intention for the next call. Designed to be provide a focus during the coming month, intentions can be either a specific goal or task (draft a manuscript, write program proposal, zero inbox) and a particular mindset (practice patience, be on time, find more joy at work).

Members of the initial group, now in its third year, have reported increases in productivity, work satisfaction, and career advancement along with benefiting from a lot of insight, advice, and practical strategies including the following:

• Take a brain break. There will be times when you feel behind or overwhelmed, and a grant deadline is looming. Sometimes you need to step back – take a walk, sit in the sun, read a book, cook a nice meal – and come back to your work later. A couple hours of break will allow you to come back with a fresh perspective, and you will be more productive and produce higher quality work. 
• Do only the essential things. Think about where you’re want to get your As and Bs and where you’re ok getting Cs and Ds.
• Start at the end. Think about what you want to accomplish (whether it’s writing a paper or grant application) writing up a manuscript, reporting on a study) and work backwards.
• Do what you love more of the time than not.
• Leadership is about setting an agenda, engaging people’s input, pulling it all together with specific next steps. Leadership is not about doing it all yourself.
• Set expectations when starting to work with new students, trainees, or research staff. Tell them what you need and how you like to work and ask them for their expectations and things they need to do their work. It’s so much less stress to have expectations clear at the beginning rather than dealing with frustration later when they are not doing things the way you want.
• Leave no doubt in people’s minds why you are here.
• Focus on the process and not the outcome.
• Find something that makes you feel passionate – ideas, initiatives, projects.
• Celebrate small things as successes; big things don’t happen that often.
• Be clear about what you need from people.
• Don’t work harder than your staff to engage them in their work.
• You can always move your boundaries; they aren’t set in stone.
• Learn to say “no” sooner.
• Put on your own mask before you help others.

Our committee is eager to share the peer mentoring model with others who are interested in starting a group of their own. The program is designed to be straightforward, easy to implement, and most importantly, helpful. SBM will even host the calls for you. Please contact Felicity Harper harperf@karmanos.org for more information.