There are times when we all need a little (or a lot) of help – who is the one person you can call?
I have been incredibly lucky over the years to have a wonderful group of people to turn to through the good, bad and downright ugly. I am not sure any of them would have called themselves mentors, but that is certainly the role they often played.
Who is the one person you call when you need advice and support?
If you are a CEO or business owner, you may call your lawyer, banker, supplier or board member to handle more tactical problems. But then there are those hairy situations that blindside you and it seems like there is no answer. That is when a mentor can save you, when another perspective can help you decide what you need to do next.
So what exactly is a mentor? There is no typical profile. A mentor may take the form of colleagues, parents, college professors, professional contacts, ministers and therapists. The frequency of visits may range from daily to yearly, with topics spanning tactical suggestions to spiritual guidance.
Despite the tremendous variety of mentor relationships there is one constant ingredient – mentorship involves both parties growing as people, leveraging experience, insight and knowledge to get them through the best and worst of times.
For me, the value of mentorship has always gone beyond personal gain; in fact, I think it is critical to our future. Knowledge and experience must be passed down so that the less experienced of us can learn from previous mistakes, freeing us to make entirely new ones! And so goes the constant march of growth and progress.
If you aren’t sure how to go about finding a mentor, this article from Inc might help. One thing is for sure, no matter which side of the mentoring relationship you are on; it will be one of the most rewarding things you will do.
See you next week.
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Alignment is Michel’s passion. Through her work with Brand Alignment Group she helps organisations align who they are with what they do and say to build more authentic and sustainable brands.
Michel Hogan is an independent brand counsel. She advises organisations on the risk to their purpose and values or making the wrong promises — with a robust, resilient brand as the result. You can find Michel at michelhogan.com, follow her on Twitter and LinkedIn. Her ebook, Between Making Money and World Peace, is now available.
