You need a mentor to fast track your way to success. However, finding a good mentor is not that easy. You cannot just choose anybody that you like. There are some things that you need to consider first in finding a good mentor.
1. Define your Goals
First, ask yourself, what is it that you want? What do you want to achieve in life? Do you want to be successful in a specific field? Are you aiming for a healthy and sexy body? Do you want to be wealthy? What are your goals in life?
Your choice of mentor is highly dependent on what your goals are. Just because somebody is successful does not necessarily mean that that person is the best person to be your mentor. Your mentor’s achievements should be in line with what you want to achieve in life.
2. Be Specific
Once you have defined your goals, you should now look for someone who already achieved whatever it is that you want to achieve. Ask yourself, is there somebody whom you aspire to be like? Who is your role model?
You should not limit yourself to just one mentor. You can have as many as you deem necessary. For example, your wealth mentor may not necessarily be your health mentor. That’s why you need to be specific not just in identifying what you want but in identifying the people whom you think had achieved success in that particular aspect in their lives.
3. Look into Expertise
One of the things that you need to consider in finding a good mentor is his/her level of expertise on the subject. If you want to grow your finances, you need to look for people who know how to handle and grow their money. If you want to have a perfect body, you need to look for people who have perfect body themselves. You want to have a healthy relationship with your partner, you need to look for people who have been in a happy relationship for years. The point is, your mentor should be an expert in that particular field.
There are people who asked money advice from people who are in financial situations worst than them. In the same way, that there are people who asked relationship and marital advice from their single friends.
It is like this, if you want to learn how to play tennis, will you ask a person who doesn’t know how to play tennis to teach you? Of course not! You are going to look for a couch who is an expert in playing tennis. This should also be the case when it comes to finding mentors. Look for someone who has been that road before.
4. Build Authentic Relationships
The best place to look for a mentor is around you. Are there people around you whom you respect and admire? Are there people whom you look up to?
Once you have identified these people, make an effort to build authentic relationships with them. Attend social gatherings. Connect with these people. Keep in touch. These small interactions can help you build a genuine relationship with them. You cannot just simply approach a stranger to be your mentor. It is best that you establish a good personal relationship with them first.
5. Read
Although a personal relationship with a mentor is always better, books about and written by people whom you admire can also be a form of mentorship. Just like a real person, books also have the power to change your thinking and beliefs. Many people succeeded in changing the way they look at things simply by reading books. For instance, if you want to be successful and wealthy, read books about wealth and success.
This is especially useful if there are no people around you who are experts in that particular field that you want to excel to. There are tons of information available out there even in the internet about famous and successful people. Read about them. Learn from their stories and apply the lessons in your life.
If you are not the reading type of person, you can still watch videos of interviews or you can listen to podcasts. The point is the information is available out there.
Good luck in finding a good mentor!
Updated Version. First Published in Pinoy Smart Living in 06.28.2019.
Feature Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay Images.