Most of us can think of people in our lives, with more experience than ourselves who have supplied information, offered advice, presented a challenge, initiated friendship, or simply expressed an interest in our development as a person. If we think long enough most of us must admit we have had mentors even though we may not have called it 'mentoring' at the time. Very often our first mentor was our parents or other relative who taught and demonstrated for us some essential knowledge or understanding that we needed.
The term "mentor" has its origin in Homer's Odyssey when a man named Mentor was entrusted with the education of the son of Odysseus. In modern times, mentoring is associated with a variety of activities including teaching, counseling, sponsoring, role modeling, job shadowing, academic and career guidance, and networking. Mentors can be helpful in just about any areas of your personal development. However, this is especially true when it comes to achieving your goals whether they are personal or in any area to which you are new and inexperienced.
In today's environment of changing technology and evolving complexity, a good mentor can help us by growing our abilities to grasp the success and security we seek. Success comes from persistence. Persistence often comes from the support and encouragement of a mentor.
A mentor is also important in those times when our thoughts are not crystal clear and we can be diverted from our goals. A mentor will coach us to greater awareness. The mentor will help us achieve increased clarity of purpose and help us focus on the tasks we need to accomplish. A mentor will help us develop personal strengths and achieve a sense of well being which often translates success.
The purpose of mentoring is also to help you pay attention to your intentions and get to where you want to be. Learning what we don't know helps us to understand why we do what we do. As we become more self aware, we can begin to consciously choose to do the tasks that lead to the success we desire
As effective mentor seeks to help you answer fundamental questions, like "Who am I?" and "What is my purpose in life?" The answers to these questions help us become action-oriented instead of waiting for something to happen to us.
In a nutshell, a mentor is important for the following reasons:
Motivation - Knowledge - Opportunity to work with a professional - Trusted advice and counsel - To be challenged in a safe environment - Practical know-how - Guidance - Sponsorship - Support - Personal Development in a non-threatening environment - Empowerment - Encouragement - Self-confidence - To help you stay aware of what you need to do and how you do it.
Do you need a mentor? If not, it is probably time for you to be a Mentor.
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