How many goals to work on in the mentoring process?

Goals are the absolute foundation of the mentoring process. They are what make mentoring not a series of loose conversations, but a structured development process that has direction, meaning and measurable results. Without clearly defined goals, it’s very easy to fall into a pattern of meetings that are valuable here and now, but don’t lead to real change in the long term.

Well-defined goals make it possible:

• Give structure to the whole process,
• Focus the conversation on what’s really important,
• monitor progress,
• And at the end – to realistically assess the effects of mentoring.

Objectives also serve another important function – they organize the mentee’s thinking about his own development. Instead of a general “I want to develop,” there are specifics: in what direction, why, and what actually should change.

Moreover, in many cases, just defining the goal is one of the most important outcomes of mentoring. Mentee’s often only during the first sessions sort out their thinking, name their needs and determine their direction. This is the point at which mentoring begins to have real value. If you want to learn more about mentoring goals and techniques for setting them, read this article.

How many goals to set for the mentoring process?

From the perspective of designing mentoring programs, we most often recommend working on 2-3 goals – depending on their complexity and the length of the process. This approach stems both from experience working with organizations and from observations of mentoring participants themselves.

Why exactly that much? First of all, it is an amount that:

• allows you to keep the focus,
• gives space for real work,
• While at the same time not limiting development to a single thread.

With two or three objectives, it is possible to deepen the topics and make a real difference, rather than just discussing them superficially. At the same time, the mentee feels that he or she is developing in several important areas, not just in one very narrow one.

We have analyzed in practice data from some 2,000 mentoring pairs using Mentiway – and the findings are very consistent with this recommendation.

Most often, participants specify:

1 target – 27% of pairs

2 targets – 25% of pairs

3 targets – 31% of pairs

Atotal, as many as 83% of mentoring processes are based on a maximum of 3 goals. This shows that even without top-down rules, participants intuitively choose a limited number of priorities.

A larger number of targets appear much less frequently:

4 targets – 10%

5+ targets – marginal (less than 10% overall)

Conclusion: in mentoring practice, the natural standard is to work on 1-3 goals, and exceeding this number happens occasionally.

Does the number of targets depend on the length of the process?

Mentoring processes can vary – both in duration and number of sessions. So the natural question is: does longer mentoring mean more goals? Data analysis shows that not as much as one might think.

Short processes (about 6 sessions)

In shorter programs:

• The share of pairs working on 1, 2 and 3 goals is very close,
• 3 targets are rarely exceeded,
• Mentoring focuses on several key areas.

In practice, this means that even with a limited number of meetings, participants are able to work on more than one topic – but still maintain a clear focus.

Longer processes (7-8 sessions and more)

In longer processes:

• The share of pairs with 1-2 targets is slightly decreasing,
• The number of pairs working on 3+ goals is growing,
• more space appears for the development of additional threads.

The longer duration provides an opportunity to develop further topics or deepen existing ones. Often, too, new goals emerge during the process as the mentee better understands his or her situation.

But – and this is key – the differences are not large. Regardless of the length of the process, the dominant model remains to work on 1-3 goals.

Why are too many targets a problem?

It may seem that the more goals, the better. In practice, it works exactly the opposite, especially in development processes based on relationship and reflection.

Too many targets:

• mentee distractions,
• makes in-depth work difficult,
• lowers the quality of the session,
• increases the risk of superficial treatment of topics instead of real progress.

As a result, mentoring becomes more of a review of topics than a real process of change. It is then difficult to have concrete conclusions and actions between sessions.

Mentoring works best when there is space for focus, consistency in meetings, and opportunity for reflection and action. It is the repetition and deepening of topics that build real change. It is difficult to achieve the same effect with 5-6 concurrent goals.

How to set goals in the mentoring process?

Well-defined goals are not created immediately. It’s a process that takes time, reflection and the right tools. Very often a mentee comes to the first session with a general sense of the need for change, but without clearly named directions.

In practice:

• This often takes up part of the first and all of the second mentoring session,
• sometimes takes even longer,
• is one of the most important steps in the entire process.

It is at this stage that the foundation of the entire cooperation is built. If the goals are well defined, subsequent sessions have a natural direction. If not – mentoring can quickly lose consistency.

At Mentiway, we encourage a comprehensive approach that includes:

1️⃣ Understanding yourself and your needs (e.g., analysis of values, priorities, areas of life)

At this stage, the mentee looks at what is really important to him or her – not just professionally, but more broadly: in life. Tools such as the Wheel of Life help see where the greatest tensions, gaps or needs for change are. This is often the moment of first important discoveries. You can read more about this technique here.

2️⃣ Selection of development areas (e.g., topic mapping, working on mind maps)

The next step is to narrow the perspective. From the big picture emerge specific areas to work on. In this way, the mentee doesn’t try to change everything at once, but chooses those elements that have the greatest impact on his or her situation.

3️⃣ Detailed goals (e.g., SMART approach)

At the end comes the specifics – goals described in clear, measurable and achievable terms. This is the moment when general directions turn into a viable action plan that you can return to throughout the process. You can read more about the SMART approach here.

This ensures that the goals are not random – just consciously chosen and well embedded in the mentee’s context.

Summary: how many goals in mentoring?

If you were to remember one thing from this article, it’s this: the best mentoring results are achieved by working on 1-3 goals.

This approach:

• is in line with practice (83% of cases),
• works regardless of the length of the process,
• keeps the balance between focus and development.

Mentoring is not about doing everything at once. It’s about consciously choosing what’s most important and working on it consistently over time.

If you want to help participants better define goals, structure the mentoring process, and ensure that everyone has access to proven tools and techniques, contact us.

In Mentiway:

• We provide a database of about 100 techniques and development tools,
• We support participants step by step,
• We help design and carry out the entire mentoring program with the support of technology.

FAQ – goals in mentoring

How many goals should a mentee have?

Most often 1-3. This is the optimal number for real work and visible results.

Can goals be changed during mentoring?

Yes. Goals can evolve – the important thing is that they are regularly reviewed and updated.

Is one target not enough?

No. If it is complex and well-defined, one goal can fully suffice for the entire process.

Does the length of mentoring affect the number of targets?

Only to a small extent. Even in longer processes, a maximum of 3 goals are most often worked on.

How to define a mentoring goal well?

It is best to use proven techniques (e.g., Wheel of Life, SMART) and take the appropriate amount of time at the beginning of the process.