Aspire For The Heights: Four Things To Look For In A Mentor Who Can Inspire You To Go Places
By: Jeff Whatton
Tags: Mentor, Success, Career, Mentorship

Mentors can come from anywhere. They can take the form of a close family member, an instructor or teacher, or even the president of your country. You can even have more than one mentor if you feel like it, so long as they are inspiring you to go along the right paths of life.

Mentors at times even take the form of bad influences. That drug-addicted uncle and his friends who raised his nephew when no one else was there could turn out to be that boy’s mentor because he hasn’t been exposed to any better. As a result, he would end up taking the path to drug addiction as well.

We must have positive mentors in our lives, so allow me to enlighten you on four characteristics of a mentor that you may want to follow in life:

They have strong mentors of their own — The mentor you want to follow doesn’t have to have been the one who went through the trials, but it could be that they observed and learned from someone who did. For instance, your mentor could be someone who watched their mother struggle at rock bottom to make ends meet for her family

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As a result, your mentor may have gotten the inspiration to make their mother proud of who they’ve become so she’ll know that her hard work was not in vain. So you want to look for someone who has a strong mentor or mentors whose lives drive them to do and be better.

They impact the lives of many — An ideal mentor would be one who has and still is serving others and making an impact in their lives. Think about what their career entails, what other activities they’re involved in when not working, what organizations they are part of, etc. A good mentor could be one who has a heart for children or the disadvantaged.

A good mentor who is in a high position may also have an interest in the areas of humanity, education, and health. So look for someone who selflessly gives back to the community and is bent on helping to bring positive change to the world in which we live. This will help you to do the same, once you have a heart for it.

Their career paths center around bringing about global change — Similar to my previous point, an ideal mentor would be one who has chosen a career path or career paths that are aimed at making a difference in the world. These career paths don’t center around financial gains but rather around helping those in need in various ways.

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This could be a career in the healthcare sector, in education, childcare, and advocacy, among others. I’d choose one who works closely with the United Nations or UNICEF as these organizations encompass most areas of human interest and global impact.

Who do they keep in their circle? — This is a question that you must ask yourself when seeking a mentor. There is a saying that goes “if you want to be a winner, hang around with winners”. This is essential if you want to go far in life, and it’s true for the mentor that you choose to follow.

An ideal mentor would’ve gotten to where he/she is because of the circle of positive and impactful people around him/her. For instance, someone who wants to make a global impact would usually work until they find themselves around those who are already in a position to make a positive global impact.

These individuals can include the president, a senator, a congressman or woman, billionaires, actors, and the like. Now, being around these people could simply mean that your potential mentor has been working either with or for these people, or they started like this and worked their way up to being included among the friendly circles of these folks. Get the picture? So choose wisely.

You do not have to get a mentor who is near you for them to be your mentor. Some people have mentors whom they have never met and will probably never know the impact that they have made on the lives of those who observe, follow, and copy them.

It would be great to find a mentor who possesses all of the above points, but it wouldn’t be a loss if they have at least one. If you have someone in your life who possesses all the traits of an ideal mentor then good for you! If not, don’t sweat it. The main thing is that you garner from someone who is a positive influence on their community or even the world at large.