Life mentors are not only the professional ones we usually think of, like teachers and coaches, but also every day people in our lives. For example, some of your current mentors include your friends, family members, neighbors, and colleagues. Life mentors can positively influence us and even change our long-term future. That one tip from an older cousin, or that one moment of inspiration from your friend can totally change your life’s direction by influencing your attitude, thoughts, beliefs, and behavior. Your life mentors are everywhere, if you’re only willing to see them. They are your siblings, significant others, grandparents, and acquaintances — to name a few. Keep your eyes open, otherwise you just might miss out on one of your greatest life mentors.
1. They Will Support You After a Setback
Have you ever felt really down after a defeat, rejection, or failure? Your life mentor supports you when you’re feeling down. They listen to you, and remind you of the big successes you’ve already had in the past. They remind you that while you feel a little down right now, you’ve got to keep your head up, because you still have a bright future ahead of you.
2. They Believe in You More Than You Do
I’ll never forget that moment when one of my own life mentors looked me straight in the eyes and said, “Believe in yourself.” He said it in a way that really hit me to the core. And at that moment, I realized that he believed in me more than I did! Your mentor knows what’s possible for you, because they can see your true potential. They believe in your because they know you’re capable of reaching your goals. Their belief will fuel your own inner self-belief.
3. They Can Give You Honest Feedback
It’s easy to delude and deceive ourselves, and it’s tremendously beneficial to have someone else to be a real mirror in your life. Your life mentors show you who you really are, so that you can see your weaknesses and work on them. They’ll show you where you need to improve, especially when you’re not fully aware of it yet. They won’t sugar-coat it for you, but they also won’t hurt you in the process either.
4. They Help Clarify Your Situation
When you’re feeling lost or confused, it’s sometimes really hard to define your situation when you’re thinking about it on your own. Getting out outside of your head, and seeing your situation through your mentor’s eyes will help you to get clear on where you are now, how you got here, and where you want to go. When you feel lost, you only need to get clear on where you are now and where you want to go.
5. They Motivate and Inspire You to Take Action
When you’re making excuses or afraid to move forward, your life mentor realizes this and alerts you. They don’t buy into your unsubstantiated excuses the same way that you do. And they have faced the fear that you’re struggling with right now, so they can help you get past it and move forward. After all, they’ve done this before and they’ve “got your back”. Let their past successes motivate you to move forward.
6. They Give You the Map and Guide You
When you’re feeling lost and you don’t know where you’re going, it’s really refreshing when someone else can help navigate you. When your mentor shows you the path that you need to go down, it makes continuing your journey so much easier. They know where you want to go and how to help direct you there. You just need to trust that they can offer some advice to help guide you.
7. They Teach You From Their Experience
You can leverage and draw upon your guide’s experience and wisdom from their own journeys, which are much like your own. Why limit yourself to your narrow experience when you can learn from your mentor’s wealth of knowledge? Learn from your mentor about when they were in your shoes and what they did to move themselves forward.
8. They Will Ask You Powerful Questions
Allow your mentor to coach you by asking you the biggest questions you really need to sit with. Sometimes when they ask you that question — that only you can figure out for yourself — that’s when you’ll make the biggest leap. Your mentor’s curiosity has the same power as a life coach — to let you listen to your heart. What does your intuition say? Your life mentor will help you to hear it.
9. They Are Your Role Model
Your mentor shows you that it was really possible for them and that they achieved it. And that means that you can achieve the same thing too. Arnold Schwarzenegger followed Reg Park, Martin Luther King, Jr. followed Ghandi. Your mentor is someone that you can model and copy. They are a living, breathing blueprint for you to imitate for your own needs. Thankfully, you don’t have to re-invent the wheel, but you can follow in their footsteps.
10. They Give you the Tools You Need to Reach Your Goals
Your mentor has the technical know-how and experience that you can draw upon. Especially if you’re working within a very niched field, some of your co-workers, your bosses, and others in your industry can help you to learn the technical knowledge that you need to reach your goals. Tap into their technical knowledge by asking them direct questions. Learn from what they already know so you can apply it in your endeavors. Featured photo credit: Bryan Campbell via flickr.com
