Find a good Mentor
One of my preferred sentences is “you could be my teacher”. My father who passed away several years ago taught me the importance of learning something every day. I followed his advices and all my life I’ve tried to learn something each day. I learned a lot from my best friend Randall L. Englund who taught me the importance of setting deadlines and converting your dreams into reality, just do it. Randy also taught me the great added value and fun of working as a team and teaching each other, we have 23 years of friendship and wrote four books together.
I learned a lot about relationships building from my friend Michel Thiry, he invited me to be part of his business network, supported me along my career and professional achievements. I also learned a lot from my friend David Hillson who always gave me feedback every time I delivered a presentation or a workshop, being also very supportive and ready to help me anytime, and sharing with me his ideas and opinions. I could cite many other names from professionals I learned something and it would be a long list.
When you are always ready to learn you will find a professional to learn from. Many people who decide to grow personally find their first mentors in the pages of books. When you want to learn you need to find your ideal one. But I believe that you need to be selective in whom you choose as a mentor. From both the positive and the negative experiences I have had with mentors, I learned something and I’d like to share with you some criteria about my model.
- A good Mentor is a worthy example: we become like people we admire and the models we follow. Just because of that we need to take great care when determining which people, we ask to mentor us.
- A good mentor is available: To be able to observe models up close and see what they do, we need to have contact with them. That requires access and availability. From our side, we need to have time with people to ask questions and learn from their answers.
- A good mentor has proven experience: I never knew of a successful person who has not learned from more experienced people. Sometimes they follow in their footsteps. Other times they use their advice to help them break new ground.
- A good mentor possesses wisdom: wise people often use just a few words to help us learn and develop. They open our eyes to worlds we might not have otherwise seen without their help. They help us to navigate difficult situations. Or they help us to see some opportunities we cannot see.
- A good mentor provides friendship and support: Good mentors provide friendship and support, unselfishly working to help you reach your potential. Advice without friendship feels cold.
- Coach who makes a difference in people’s lives: They help them grow. They improve their potential. They increase their productivity.
I selected my mentor many years ago, and know we are close friends an co-authors of four books, thinking about our fifth one. Choose your mentor soon, if you need more information contact us.
TODAY IS A GOOD DAY but TOMORROW WILL BE BETTER!
Alfonso Bucero, MSc, PMP, PMI-RMP, PfMP, PMI Fellow