Everyone Deserves a Mentor (Coach)

Since my retirement in July, I have been asked at least a couple of times per day, “how’s retirement” and “what are you doing now?” Often, when I explain the mentoring work I am doing with the IGCA and the 2nd book for new coaches I am writing, I usually hear how excited people are and how important it is for new coaches to have mentors. As I have spent the last 7 months mentoring new coaches and working on the content of the book, I keep coming back to the realization that while it is vital for first year people in any activity to have support from someone more experienced, everyone at every level can use a mentor

We all know no one achieves success entirely on his/her own. Behind every great leader, athlete, entrepreneur, or professional, there’s often a mentor who provided guidance, support, and wisdom along the way. Whether you're just starting in your career, navigating a new challenge, or striving for personal growth, having a mentor can be the key to unlocking your full potential. Let’s take a look at why everyone—regardless of their field or experience level—can benefit from mentorship and how it can accelerate success in everything you do.

1. Guidance and Wisdom: A mentor provides experience-based advice, helping you avoid common mistakes as well as ideas you may not have known about. A mentor provides knowledge that only experience can teach. They’ve been through challenges, failures, and successes that make them a valuable resource for insight. Learning from someone who has already walked the path you’re on can help you avoid common pitfalls and make smarter decisions.

2. Accelerated Growth and Learning: A mentor can speed up your personal and professional development by sharing knowledge and best practices. Mentors help mentees develop skills faster by providing focused learning and feedback. Instead of spending years figuring things out alone, a mentee can gain direct insights into what works and what doesn’t in a much quicker period of time.

3. Networking Opportunities: Mentors open doors to valuable professional connections, which can lead to career advancements, business partnerships, or learning from other industry leaders. When you are just starting out, you have no connections to anyone because of your inexperience so hooking up with someone with connections can move your learning up to even higher levels.

4. Accountability and Motivation: A mentor helps keep a mentee on track by setting goals, checking progress, and encouraging them to stay committed to their aspirations. Sometimes, self-doubt or procrastination can hold people back, and a mentor provides the push needed to keep going.

5. Boost in Confidence: Self-doubt is common when taking on new challenges. A mentor provides encouragement, reassurance, and constructive feedback, helping their mentee believe in themselves and their abilities. 

6. Perspective and Problem-Solving: Mentors help mentees see challenges from different angles, offering fresh perspectives that can lead to creative solutions. Sometimes, being too close to a problem can make it difficult to find the best solution, and a mentor’s experience brings clarity.

Mentorship isn’t just for those at the beginning of their journey; it’s a lifelong tool for growth and development. Whether you’re seeking guidance or offering it to someone else, mentorship creates a cycle of learning, support, and success. The most accomplished individuals recognize the power of learning from those who have walked the path before them. Sometimes, we feel like we are supposed to be experts at everything associated with our jobs and even our lives, when we all always have something to learn, no matter what point we are at. Even people of great experience can utilize extra support at various points.

Instructional coaching guru Steve Barkley puts it best when he said, “instead of everyone needs a mentor, everyone deserves a mentor.” I love that and the key is to be intentional about having someone in place to support you and then to reach out when you need the extra boost. A lot of people say they have someone to reach out to but then are afraid to say anything to the mentor when they could use support! We have to get past the fear of failure or looking bad before reaching out!

One of my next projects connected to my book is creating a system to help others find mentors and give mentors the training/support they need to be successful and to give back to something that has meant so much to them. I will keep you posted when that system is ready to go!

If you don’t have a mentor yet, now is the time to find one—and if you do, consider paying it forward by mentoring someone else. The impact can be life-changing!