Your Mentor

Mentor: A mentor is an experienced and trusted advisor who trains and advises another, especially younger person. In life, career or profession, someone who has already reached a recognizable level of success has to show you how and show you the way to reach the peak of your potential. 

The role of a mentor in making a person, a person with a vision, a person set for greatness, can never be downplayed. No matter how independent you are, you'll get where you want to go faster with a little help and that more than usually comes in the form of a mentor. No matter how much self development, the vast availability of resources and incredible connections you have, you are blind, to a large extent, in whatever area you set yourself up for advance. A  mentor is the one who walked and worked where you are striving to find your way. A  mentor is the one who once tried and failed, tried and failed, tried and failed, and put all the failure together to set up for success. A  mentor is the one with the eyes you need to walk the blind path you currently are in not because your mentor could see at the beginning too, but because your mentor walked blind and fell, walked blind and failed, walked blind and mastered the terrain and succeeded. A  mentor is a "personal guide with a very accurate and proven map" in that unknown land. The idea and purpose of mentoring is for progress, your progress.  


In your choosing a mentor, a mentor in the same business area as yours may be  able to better understand your business challenges and concerns, although this is not a criterion that is compulsory, as fruitful mentoring relationships do not necessarily happen within the same industry. You should look out, when choosing a mentor, for someone who believes in you, shows you the way and who challenges and brings out the best in you. Great mentors have the following characteristics;

• Your success is important to them 
• Usually and necessarily available 
• Always encourage you at every meeting 
• Always give actionable advice that you can implement immediately 
• Show you how to do better 
• Sit and work with you on steps to be taken 
• Honest and tough on you
• Help you have a better view of reality 
• Make you a good thinker and a doer 
• Motivate and help you progress faster 
• Constantly help you to improve yourself 
• Challenge you and show you how you can accomplish even more
• Help you with their social and professional networks (Do intros)

"A mentor can serve as a sounding board at critical points throughout your career," said Diane Domeyer, "They can provide guidance on career management, you may not be able to get from other sources and insider's perspective on the business, as well as make introductions to key industry contacts." Worthy to note is that not only business and career people need mentors, regardless of who you are, where you are and what you do, you need that experienced hand that help uou better your person, your work/Job/Career and your life as a whole.