Some of the best advise I have ever received was  ONLY take advise from people getting the results you want.

Clearly if you, or a loved one, require brain surgery, you would go to the best brain surgeon.  If you want to know how to play tennis, you would go to the coach that you believe to be the best tennis player.  If you want parenting advise, you would go to a successful parent.  And if you want success in your business, you would go to someone that has demonstrated the success you want.

Everyone can be a teacher, tis true.. however, not everyone is cut out to be your mentor.

Are you my MENTOR?

When I first started my business, I could easily see the ones who were going to have success and the ones who were not.  Yes, there was a high-energy spirit to them, they were in action.. but, also I noticed they had someone whom they were hanging around and listening to.

I did recognize the value in that, and I sought out to find that person to tune into.  Reminds me of the book, in the Dr. Suess I can read myself book series, Are you My Mother?

I was out on the search……seeking, silently asking…..Are you My Mentor?

With 10 years of experience in the network marketing industry, I find it interesting when someone calls on me, frustrated with their results.  When I ask them the question of what or whom have they been listening to,  it quickly reveals that many are not certain whom to follow or whom to listen to.  The following steps will serve as a guide for some understanding around mentors:

1.  Be Selective.

You have heard this before, To be a good leader, one has to know well to follow.

• Follow someone who has achieved the level of results, preferably with their results being as recent as possible. Let’s face it, the person in action and getting results right now in the game, has a clear advantage over the person who got results, say years ago.
• You should be able to relate to this person, and they must be able to relate to you.
• This person will empower you. You should not feel invalidated by them.  They will challenge you, yes, however, if you are working with someone who consistently wants to make you feel small, realize you are the mentor in that relationship and move on!

2.  Listen Up.

• Be attentive to the facts that produce results, and tune out everything else.

I must admit, having found a mentor, it took some practice to tune out the other voices.   For anyone new in a business,  in most cases, MUCH input comes, faster than one can assimilate it.   I realized I had gotten used to allowing input from those NOT getting the results I wanted.  This would cause a distraction for a moment or for many moments!  I realized that I was accustomed to listening to those that didn’t have success in mind at all. In fact, I had to really discipline myself to only tuning into the vibration of success.  This was probably one of my greatest challenges as a budding entrepreneur – creating NEW habits of listening.

There is a time and a place to ask for feedback, and taking note of opinions,  and when it comes to the success of your business, this is NOT one of those times!

3. The mentor can change.

• Mentors are meant to change and people come into our lives to assist us only to a certain level.  It’s up to us to change to grow.

Finding and having a mentor that has demonstrated the results you seek, means the mentor will change.    I surpassed the results of my first mentor in a relatively short period of time. It actually surprised me, and even had me at a standstill for a bit,  unsure what to do, having reached a greater result.   We tend to put our mentors up on a pedestal.  This experience had me realize this very important lesson.

Sometimes mentors come in the form of someone we are not necessarily in communication with.  Perhaps they have deceased, or are not available for regular conversations.  These people can still continue to guide us, and lead us.

Having a mentor is not only valuable to success, it’s vital!    Gaining an outside perspective from a success point of view, a higher level of thinking, is essential to bridge the gap to success.

I would love to hear your experiences and thoughts around mentors.  And as always, if you found this to be of value to you, please share!