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Significance Begins HERE

The most important personal growth phrase you will ever hear a good leader say to you is “FOLLOW ME!”

So what is a good model when choosing a good mentor to follow? Here are a few thoughts on choosing worthiness in a mentor. 

1.A Good Mentor Is A Worthy Example – Many professionals attempt to persuade us to believe that it is possible to divorce your private life from your public life.

1. Author Gordon Hinckley writes that it is not wise or even possible, to divorce private behavior from public leadership – though there are those who have gone to great lengths to suggest that this is the only possible view of “enlightened” individuals….They are wrong and they are deceived. By its very nature, true leadership carries with it the burden of being an example. Is it asking too much that our elected officers stand tall and be a model before the people that elected them? If values are not established at the top, behavior down ranks will be seriously jeopardized and undermined. Values that are being neglected will vanish in due time.
2. A Good Mentor Is Available – Andrew Carnegie once stated that as he grew older he paid less attention to what people say. I just watch what they do. As you consider a mentor – look for individuals that are 2-3 levels ahead of you and not 10 levels. This enables you to spend your time with people who are truly available to you and can help. To illustrate this point – what if you are deciding to run for political office for the very first time. The President would not be a good place to seek out mentorship – stay connected to the grass roots with the resources that are within your grasp. The key thought is that at every level of growing find a mentor.
3. 3.A Good Mentor Has Proven Experience – An old Chinese proverb states ”To know the road ahead, ask those coming back.” The further you go in personal development the more new ground you will break. Grow from others experience. This is true in my life’s journey – at every new level I have sought out those ahead of me in order to gain insight and rapid growth. Rudy Giuliani stated that all leaders are influenced by those we admire. Reading about and studying their traits inevitably allows an inspiring leader to develop their own traits.4.A Good Mentor Possesses Wisdom – An manufacturing expert was called one day to assess why all systems had stopped and were not functioning. The expert arrived with nothing more than a small black bag. As the expert assessed the situation he pulled our a small hammer and tapped precisely at the correct place and all systems began to work again. The expert left a $1000 dollar bill behind. Management was furious because it was not itemized. The response came back: Tapping with a hammer $1; Knowing where to tap $999. THAT IS WISDOM in action! Wise people often use few words to help us see what we are overlooking and help us navigate difficult matters in life.5.A Good Mentor Provides Friendship and Support – “Great things happen whenever we stop seeing ourselves as God’s gift to others and begin seeing others as God’s gift to us” – James Vuocolo. At Peter Drucker’s passing Jim Collins wrote – Drucker’s most important lessons cannot be found in any text or lecture………but in the example of his life. I made a personal pilgrimage to Claremont, California in 1994 seeking wisdom from the greatest management thinker of our age. I came away feeling that I had met a compassionate and generous human being who almost as a side benefit was a prolific genius. We have not lost a guru on a pedestal but a beloved professor who welcomed students into his modest home for warm conversation. Peter Drucker was not driven by the desire to say something but the desire to learn something from every student he met.

   6.A Good Mentor Is A Coach Who Makes A Difference in People’s Lives – The term coach originates in the 15th century in the town of Kocs. It was a vehicle that carried royalty and eventually other important items such as mail, jewelry, etc. The idea was that a coach carried something or someone from where they are to where they desire to go. Think about how this concept has permeated our world. Kevin Hall’s book Aspire gives us insight to the usage of transporting people from one place to a preferred place.

   Self evaluation is helpful, but evaluation from someone else is essential – Andy Stanley

   1. C- is for caring for people we coach
   2. O- is for observing attitudes, behaviors, and performance
   3. A- align people for peak performance using their strengths
   4. C- Communicate and give feedback
   5. H- help people improve their lives and performance

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Music: “Gratitude Mood” by David Arivett. You can learn more about his music by clicking on his name. THANKS DAVID!