What great mentors look like

Spoiler: they don't wear capes.

Hello Friends!

Welcome to the 8th edition of our newsletter! Suhana Chooli here again, thanks for being here, truly. It’s been a week (or 2 months? time is fake), but we made it and I’m glad you’re here.

If you’ve been enjoying these editions, feel free to pass them along to a friend or teammate who might need a little spark (or a gentle nudge).

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So, mentoring. We talk about it a lot. Skills, behaviours, mindsets, tools... But what does it actually look like in practice?

Recently, my partners in crime, Alicja Turner , Lorraine L A. and I sat down to interview some of our programme participants. They had taken part in our Mentoring Skills and Practice Course and we wanted to hear about their learning, their mentoring journeys and what they'd put into action. You know... evaluation stuff.

I thought we'd walk away with great examples of impact. We walked away with role models.

We spoke to mentors from across countries, sectors and stages of experiences. And what they shared - with so much honesty, humility and clarity stayed with me until now.

There was  James Gachiri , who realised good mentoring isn’t about having answers; it’s about helping others trust their own. He didn’t just learn it. He rebuilt his entire approach around it. It got me thinking: am I making space for people to grow or just setting it up so they grow the way I think they should? (And yes, this tickled the very core of my mom brain, the part that makes life plans for my kids. Not always helpful. Working on it.)

NADHIFA JAMA  showed that trust isn’t a “nice to have.” It’s foundational. Her reflections made me pause and notice how often I slip back in surface-level connection instead of truly being present.

Lucy Maingi  said something simple that really stayed with me: “I was doing most of the thinking for them.” It wasn’t a dramatic confession. Just a clear-eyed observation and a turning point. From there, she shifted toward creating more space for her mentees to explore and decide for themselves. It left me thinking about how often a lot of us, the "problem solvers", step in when we should be stepping back.

And then there’s Patrick Magara who works with young waste collectors. He doesn’t just support them, he challenges their view of what’s possible. His gift? Asking the kind of questions that make people believe they can be more.

Christine Mbaabu, CPA-K, MAPPM came into the course with experience and still asked, “Can I be doing this better?” Her humility reminded me that growth isn't about what you know, but about what you don't.

Ham Namakajjo had shifted from consultant to mentor, letting go of giving answers and learning instead to guide. “Consultants solve,” he told us. “Mentors help people find their own way.” His reminder? Sometimes mentoring isn’t about learning something new; it’s about unlearning old habits that get in the way.

Philipp Wind  wanted to do better by the entrepreneurs his team supports. What he found is that structure doesn’t have to mean rigidity. Sometimes, doing things with more intentionality is the most transformative shift of all.

Yonas Efrem joined not because he had to, but because he wanted to show up better. His takeaway? Experience without reflection is just repetition: doing the work isn’t enough; it’s the pausing, the examining, the intentional tweaking that makes it growth.

Keni Kariuki brought a strategist’s lens to mentoring. For him, it's not just about supporting individuals, it's about strengthening the systems around them. Being intentional about setting clear boundaries and roles doesn't limit relationships, but strengthens them. He reminded me that healthy relationships don't just help people, they shape better cultures and ecosystems.

Salome Ayugi realised that her entrepreneurs didn’t just need resources. They needed relationships. That shift, from offering advice to building connection, reframed how I think about what really moves the needle. (Spoiler: it's rarely just more advice. Or more training.)

These weren’t just stories of good practice. They were reminders of how deep this work can go, when it’s done with care.

What struck me most was that when you build the capacity of mentors, you’re not just supporting individual learning, you’re strengthening the entire ecosystem. These mentors aren’t working in isolation. They’re shaping how entrepreneurs and leaders make decisions, how organisations hold space and how communities build resilience. Mentoring well isn’t just a skill. It’s a ripple effect.

I came to capture mentoring in action. What I walked away with? Role models for what great mentors and leaders should be. (Oh, and also a mild case of imposter syndrome. But we're calling it growth right?)

You can read their stories here. And if something in there sparked a thought, or reminded you of someone you’ve learned from, I (we)’d love to hear it. Just comment below.

P.S. What we heard about the Mentoring Skills and Practice Course:

It’s not just a course—it’s a mindset shift. Here’s what stuck with us from participants:

• It helps people unlearn “fixing” and start guiding. Mentoring becomes about asking better questions, not giving better answers.
• It gives structure without killing intuition. Tools like the OSCAR model gave their mentoring more shape, not more scripts.
• It normalises reflection and makes it practical. People came out more aware of how they show up and how to hold space well.
• It meets you where you are. Whether someone was new to mentoring or already mentoring, the course helped them level up.
• It turns mentoring from a “nice to have” into a foundational part of how they lead and support entrepreneurs.

Just saying: if mentoring is part of your work, this course might be exactly what you didn’t know you needed 😉.

Until then,

Your slightly sleep-deprived, always reflective (or trying),

Suhana

To get our other Monthly Newsletter, where we cover more mentoring-related topics and frequently seek mentors and mentees for our programmes, simply subscribe here to have it delivered directly to your inbox.

If you are interested in learning how you could bring mentoring to your work and how mentoring-centred personalised learning programmes can enhance the impact of your initiatives, contact us now at info@humanedge.org.uk.

Talk soon!