Mentoring can be a very powerful experience affecting the lives of both the mentor and the mentee. Appropriate guidance that can accelerate growth also builds a sense of community and support. When someone embarks upon mentoring, the right resources can really mean all the difference. In this hub, we take a deep dive into some of the great leadership, coaching, and startup-building books that can help mentors sharpen their skills and confidently stand up in front of their mentees. There is an amazing wealth of knowledge, frameworks, and practical approaches in these texts for anybody looking to be a better mentor.

Whether you are new to mentoring or have been doing it for years, these reviews will assist you in finding books that will attract your style and approach. From Eric Schmidt‘s “Trillion Dollar Coach” to Kim Scott’s “Radical Candor,” these reviews distill the key lessons and provide actionable insights to take away as you develop your mentoring style.

Featured Reviews

Here, you have an array of detailed reviews on some of the essential books for mentors. Each review will explain a book’s core lessons and takeaway points and illustrate how these principles can affect your approach to mentoring.

Trillion Dollar Coach – Eric Schmidt, Jonathan Rosenberg, Alan Eagle

Written by ex-Googlers, the book distills the leadership wisdom of Bill Campbell, who mentored the biggest players of Silicon Valley, including Steve Jobs and Larry Page: “Trillion Dollar Coach” reveals how Campbell’s teachings created billion-dollar companies for Google and others.

Key Takeaways:

  • The significance of trust-based relationships with the mentee, being in the present moment, and actively listening.
  • Concentrate on the person’s growth instead of being fixated with business goals alone.
  • Seeking control is not what mentorship is about. You guide by empowering mentees over their own decision-making.

Why It’s Valuable for Mentors:

“This book is about becoming an empathetic hands-on mentor who helps mentees succeed in their careers but also cares about their personal growth.

Give and Take – Adam Grant

Adam Grant’s “Give and Take” shows how a giving attitude can bear the fruits of success. Givers, takers, and matchers form Grant’s social groups, where giving beyond expecting anything can bear the greatest rewards of success. Grant further illuminates the hidden side of interpersonal relationships, a mentorship structure-based win for both parties.

Key Takeaways:

  • A giver’s mindset in mentorship sustains more profound, meaningful connections.
  • Put simply, you do not need to give away everything. In essence, it is about balancing generosity with setting boundaries.
  • The potency of others’ giving. This means that the relationships are meant to nurture the success of both the mentor and mentee.

Why It’s Valuable for Mentors:

This book will make it clear to you that, irrespective of time, resources, or advice you may be giving to your mentee, ultimately, it is those same rewards that come back to both you and the person you are helping.

The Coaching Habit – Michael Bungay Stanier

“The Coaching Habit” distills the art of coaching into seven simple yet powerful questions that will change how you engage in mentorship. This practical and straightforward field guide is for anyone mentoring on how to listen more and less, how to ask the right questions, and how best to walk with their mentees so that they find confidence in themselves.

Key Takeaways:

  • Instead of always providing advice, asking questions meant for mentees to build their own critical thinking.
  • The seven essential questions that anchor mentors in insights and actions.
  • Creating coaching moments that are never forced or too time-consuming.

Why It’s Worthwhile for Mentors:

For mentors looking to make an immediate impact, this book provides easy-to-learn methods that ensure you’re not giving desperate mentees the answers, but instead helping them discover solutions on their own.

Radical Candor — Kim Scott

In “Radical Candor,” Kim Scott sets forth a feedback framework that is kind and direct. Scott says that truly effective mentoring is when you care personally and challenge directly at the same time. This ambience then fosters dignity for the growth that comes through honesty, even when it’s tough feedback.

Key Takeaways:

  • The key to more effective and candid feedback is building relationships based on trust and openness.
  • Combining “care personally” and “challenge directly” will allow them to grow without feeling attacked.
  • Providing feedback that inspires the growth of the person rather than drawing out fear.

Why It’s Valuable for Mentors:

Open and honest communication, aided by this book, allows the mentor to build an environment where success and failure can be learning opportunities.

More Mentorship Resources

These four books are just the beginning in developing your mentorship skills; with the multitude of books out there, the possibilities are endless. Training oneself to be an excellent mentor is by far the best way to aid one’s mentees in achieving success. Remember that mentorship is never a one-size-fits-all approach. However, the process of reading and learning from as many sources as possible will enable you to develop an approach that works best with you and your mentees.

Keep Evolving and Keep Growing

Good mentors are always learning and growing, changing their styles as they see fit. At Startup Mentorship Hub, we believe these books are great resources for refining your style of mentoring, from creating deeper relationships with mentees to giving feedback that fosters real change. Whether you want to enhance your coaching skills, build more trust, or be a better listener, these resources will help fill the gap.