Why are Mentorships so Powerful?

I remember the first time I saw one of my long time mentors in person on stage in 2012. It was after flying halfway around the world to be at a conference in Southern California to see a guy that I simply read a book that he wrote. I felt a connection with his teaching and alignment with the values he wrote in his book, and I wanted more. The investment was worth it I thought.

Getting into the room first, taking my seat, second row, in the VIP section (made possible after upgrading for another $997 at the registration), I heard the buzz from outside. Everyone else was waiting to get in. The doors flew open. People were literally running at full-tilt to get the best seats - I had never seen this and it got me even more pumped. The room was filling up and then the music started. Somewhere between six or even seven hundred people were bouncing, clapping and cheering in the seats behind me. Then he ran on to stage with what seemed to be as much energy as the whole room! For the whole weekend, I was glued to his words, his training and invested in a year-long mentoring with him in his programme.

Brendon Burchard was his name. And to this day, I know I would not be where I am today without the mentoring received by him, his content and his programmes. Everything is virtual now and I still get access to his training, but I will never forget that experience, nor the feelings that I had which made me feel like I had “come home” somehow.

What Was It That Made His Mentoring so Powerful?

You see for me, the inspiration came not only from what Brendon spoke, but the way he spoke and the why behind what he presented and what he did. It was the values that underpinned everything that he stood for. They were laced though all of his teaching, his books and his programmes. His tools and tactics enabled me to push through and implement everything I needed to make possible, what I wanted in my business and in my life. It was the feeling of “along-side-ness” that I felt made the difference. Most of his training was pre-recorded and loaded onto a members area. Yet it was the coaching calls that made me feel he was walking alongside me.

Access to training is not enough. Access to a community of others on the same path as you is not enough. Access to a mentor, combined with an awesome community and the best practice tactics and training - that’s the game-changer.

Does Mentoring Need to be Face-to-Face?

Since 2012 I have firmly believed that you don’t need a face-to-face relationship with someone for them to act as your mentor. You might find a moving video on YouTube or on the TED Talk network; a stirring presentation that connects with you in some way. You might read a book and get sucked right in, like I did. You might even attend an event with hundreds, or even thousands online. However you connect with a person, their message and their content, you can dig deeper into their teaching and mentoring in many ways. This becomes a kind of mentorship that gives you the flexibility to do it on your own terms, minimising travel and even as I write this, in a fragmented world of travel disruptions due to the Covid-19 pandemic, enabling you to connect in without any excuses. 

Fundamentally, mentorships of any kind, help people to get to a higher level of achievement that they would not be able to do on their own. A great mentorship will give the person being mentored, a push when they need it, encouragement when they need it and correction when needed. I know many times personally, I have needed a proverbial kick up the backside and having a mentor who is walking alongside me rather than some far off distant guru, has proved to help move the needle for me in a much better way. 

When considering or searching for a mentor, the virtual mentorship that I talked about that I received wirth Brendon, blended with group coaching calls, served me well. However, getting into a mentoring group of some kind, with a sense of being connected with the mentor personally, should be a must. Look for ways that you can connect with the mentor rather than them always being far off and out of reach.

The True Power of Mentorship

If there was one reason that I would say that I will never go without some kind of mentorship in the future, it’s the power that a mentor has to help with those times when you simply don’t know what to do next. You hit a roadblock or hurdle and you just don’t know if you should stop, spend time and energy in demolishing it, climb over it or turn around. A mentor that has walked the path that you are on and who is not a million miles ahead of you can show you and guide you on what to do next. Whatever they show you, it will still be your choice to make and a great mentor should never force you into anything - they are there to provide you with the guidance you need, at the times you need it. On the flip side of this, you should never level any kind of blame at the direction of a mentor for anything related the outcome of your actions. If you are shown a path to step out onto and it doesn’t work out, that path might not have been right for you in the first place, it might not have suited your life or business and ultimately it is still a gift to learn from and try something else. If, in stepping out onto the path you are guided to by a mentor and it works out, the success is still yours and yours alone. The mentor guided you, you took the action. Unfortunately I have seen many that portray themselves as mentors who take all the creation and go on some kind of ego trip when they share success stories of their mentees. Good to bad, the responsibility rests with you.

Good vs Bad Mentors

There is no easy way to say this, but while there are bad mentors out there in the world that you need to avoid, it is up to you to learn how to find the right one for you. That’s part of my journey and why here in England, I have struggled to find someone aligned with the same values as I have, wanting to make a difference more than build up their bank balance and have connected with mentors based across the pond more than any others. Asking the right questions, doing your due diligence and researching the background of a possible mentor is important - and on two occasions when I failed to do my research it cost me a lot of money and time wasted, but it taught me the importance of doing my homework before signing up.

Mentorships are Powerful.

Hands down, anyone who wants to move on in life or business, to achieve greater things, make a bigger impact and perform at a higher level, needs to find the right mentor for themselves. Someone who has been there before you, is an expert in their subject and has demonstrated they can get results too. You will get the guidance to help you achieve your goals from someone who has walked the path you want to walk. You must be willing to listen to the guidance on offer and to take the actions you need to take. It may push you wildly outside of your comfort zone from time to time, but you end up in a stretch zone instead - where you overcome those barriers that have held you back, growing into the best version of you and achieving your aspirations. 

Remember that you are investing in you and in a mentor to accelerate the speed at which you achieve your goals. Some mentors and their mentorship may seem out of reach to you, simply because of how much they cost. If you can advance your business growth, personal development or your career, far faster with a mentor, what price would you put on that? Often the cost of staying exactly where you are will far outweigh the cost of investing in a mentor, a group mentorship or similar. It may seem far out there, but the cost of any mentoring should be possible to recoup within a defined timeframe, and your judgement on this will be part of your due diligence before signing up.

Don’t Put it Off - Start Your Search Today

Yes, today! Start your search for a mentor and the right kind of mentorship for your life and business. The choice is yours to stay where you are right now or look for ways to step forward into your future. If I can be of help in that search, or even if you want to consider applying for mentorship with me - click here and answer a few questions, then choose a date and time for us to have a FREE 20-minute call where we can chat things through, you can see if we are a good fit and then maybe we can start this journey together.