THE POWER OF MENTORSHIP

“Your mentor is a picture of your future”…Pastor Sam Adeyemi

Mentorship is the art of training which a person who is more knowledgeable in an area gives to a person who is less knowledgeable in that area. The person being mentored (Mentee) goes through this training under the Mentor who is obviously more experienced or more advanced in a particular area. A mentor gives direction, advice, support, encouragement and motivation. It was Albert Einstein who said that if he has seen any further, it was because he stood on the shoulders of giants. Mentorship is like buying into someone’s experience and seeing from the kaleidoscope of their intellectual collections. A mentor replicates his mind, his thought, his personality in those he mentors.

Jesus would probably be a towering example in this regard. When he began his ministry, he chose 12 persons who would have to learn under him even though one of them was going to betray him. He poured himself out into them and thought them things about his Modus Operandi. They were privileged to learn from the centre piece of wisdom itself and the fire he lit in the world still shines to this day. If he died without mentoring anyone, it’s likely no one will be talking about Christianity. Many positive people that have walked past the earth have not been able to replicate themselves in their followers and this underscores the power of ideas- the intangible minute forces that can transform the very essence of humanity. An idea makes, an idea mares, an idea influences and flows hither and thither like the waves of the sea. Mentors activate the ideas in the mind of the mentees and help them discover who they really are.

In reality, what a mentor does to his or her mentees is to teach out of the ideas that have made him or her.  A mentor cannot give more than what he or she possesses. So if you have to choose a mentor, choose one that looks like where you are going to. Do not choose someone who molds block to mentor you in refining gold for he has no business with gold.  Don’t go to a Lorry driver and ask him to teach you how to fly an aircraft. Find a shining example in your area of interest and ask the person to be your mentor.

The many troubles that our world possesses is largely because of evil mentorship. An evil mentor breeds evil mentees. The Boko Haram scourge that is bedeviling Nigeria today is because of evil mentorship. Osama Bin Laden, the late Al-qaeda mastermind of the World Trade Center Terrorist attack of 2001 had many followers in his jihadist tendencies. Apart from masterminding terror attacks, he poured himself forth into many people and these people have become the dog in a manger of our today’s world. A former ambassador of Nigeria to Sudan, speaking to Punch Newspapers not long ago opined that Osama Bin Laden’s allies trained Boko Haram loyalists and this replication of thoughts, of ideas, of modus operandi is what Nigeria is suffering from at the moment.

It was Edmund Burke who said that said “Evil persists when good men do nothing.” The good men of our time need to arise to this call of mentorship, to identify teachable minds and replicate their thoughts and ideologies in them. The problem of our world today is that many of the good people are are skeptical about replicating themselves in people lest they lose what they think they have.  Part of the challenge is also that many young people don’t want to be taught. To the younger generation, do not go about in an I-know-it-all kind of ideology. In our nation today, mentorship is the way to go; it is one way that the younger generation can leverage on the experiences of the older generation. A young person who wants to get ahead is permitted to have more than one mentor. For instance, you can have career mentor, spiritual mentor, political mentor, academic mentor, leadership mentor and also financial matters mentor. It all depends on you and what you are interested in.

It is not compulsory that you must have met all your mentors personally because you can connect with them through their books, videos, updates, tweets, and in this digital era, whichever way you use, just get the right mentorship. Yet it is absolutely important that you have a mentor who you meet from time to time that holds you accountable for your next level and someone who will not tolerate mediocrity from you but will help you rise above your weaknesses and become stronger in your strength. This is really the way to go to place our nation on a stronger foundation, to build a stronger and more united and productive generation. 

You can find a mentor today and if you would like further discussion, you can contact me so we can discuss further on how you may get the right mentorship to advance your level in life.

Contact me on 08064284852.

I love you. Stay on top of your game!