Mentoring – it sounds old fashioned, but it’s so on-point in 2020.

A mentor is someone who uses their knowledge and experience to guide.  They should never say what to do, rather give options for going down the path that suits you.  We’re all different and we need to foster and encourage those differences.  When mentoring, I want to see uniqueness, quirkiness, free-thinking, and personality – not mine, but yours.

Mentoring is the ability to gently show worth.  It may be in self, or in ideas, or innovation or in exhibiting or selling your work or just doing whatever it is you really want to do.  A mentor wants to see you grow – each petal at a time, like an unfolding flower ready to show its true inner beauty and purpose.

Mentoring really is about unlocking potential – your potential.

A good mentor:

  • Invests in your success and want to help you see and take full advantage of your potential.
  • Wants to build confidence in what you do.
  • Guides you towards the answers to your problems.
  • Gives constructive feedback, not just when things go well but most importantly to help you figure out where things went wrong.
  • Listens and supports, in the good times, and the not-so-good times.  We’ve been there too, remember.
  • Introduces the tools needed to help you lock into your vision for where you want to go.
  • Lead you to promote a growth mindset.

Best of all, a good mentor wants to challenge you to be the best you can be – and sometimes that won’t be easy.

If that’s not on-point, then I give up.  Mentoring is so 2020.

Interested in a unique opportunity to work with three top-rated mentors in Extensions2020 at The Embroiderers Guild NSW?  Effie Mitrofanis, Dianne Magro and I would love to work with you.

Energised Writing next week.  I can’t wait.

cathy jack coupland