The following contains excerpts from the book, Mentoring 101 (Maxwell).
At our music school in Odessa, Texas we believe music is more than sound, it is relationships. In relationships, the subject of leadership is paramount. A good leader aspires to mentor those he is leading.
In this book, John Maxwell shows the process and attitude of a leader in mentoring others. The basic premise of the book is that leaders must be willing to mentor others, even to the point that they surpass the leader himself, in order to find life’s truest rewards, even beyond that of personal success.
He admits that the process of mentoring takes a lot of work and time. It is not a quick process. “The ability to find another’s seed of success takes commitment, diligence, and a genuine desire to focus on others.” Having a larger personal perspective on success is key. He quotes Cullen Hightower, “A true measure of your worth includes all the benefits others have gained from your success.”
At our music school in Odessa, Texas we believe in our students and endeavor to serve them in their pursuit of maximizing their potential, not only for their own benefit but also for the benefit of those they themselves will ultimately serve.
Thinking like a mentor includes the following ideals: 1) Make people development your top priority, 2) Limit who you take along, 3) Develop Relationships before starting out, 4) Give help unconditionally, 5) Let them fly for a while, 6) Put fuel in their tank (through training resources), 7) Stay with them until they can solo successfully, 8) Clear the flight path (from lack of direction, bureaucracy, isolation, busywork, and poor or dishonest communication), and 9) Help them repeat the process.
To mentor people, a leader must realize this important lesson: “The people closest to me determine my level or success of failure. The better they are, the better I am.” John Maxwell recounts in his own life, that when his schedule was as full as he could possibly make it, ultimately, “the only places where my influence and productivity were growing were where I had identified potential leaders and developed them.”
We endeavor to provide examples of excellence for students in our music school in Odessa, Texas to follow. Teachers in our school have gained credibility through their own successes, and they are willing to pass along that success to each of their students.
This is what he looks for in a potential leader to mentor: 1) They make things happen (Andrew Carnegie said, “As I grow older, I pay less attention to what men say. I just watch what they do.”), 2) They see and seize opportunities (Walter P. Chrysler, founder of the automotive corporation that bears his name, said, “The reason so many people never get anywhere in life is because when opportunity knocks, they are out in the backyard looking for four-leaf clovers.”), 3) They influence others, 4) They add value, 5) They attract other leaders, 6) They equip others, 7) They provide inspiring ideas (when you surround yourself with creative people, you’re never at a loss for inspiring ideas. Great ideas are nothing more than the restructuring of what you already know.) 8) They posess uncommonly positive attitudes, 9) They live up to their commitments (It’s been said that commitment is another name for success.) 10) Have loyalty (if someone you’re considering to mentor lacks loyalty, he is disqualified. The funny thing about loyalty is that the more successful you are, the more of an issue it becomes.)
At our music school in Odessa, Texas we choose to seethe potential in each student and try to help them see the unique hidden gift within themselves.
Steps to mentoring people include the necessity to: 1) See them as who they can become, 2) Let them borrow your belief in them, 3) Catch them doing something right, 4) Believe the best- give others the benefit of the doubt (the ancient Greeks used to say, “He who mistrusts most should be trusted least.”), 5) Realize that ‘10’ has many definitions, 6) Place people in their ‘strength’ zones (“I don’t think it is an exaggeration to say that the success of a leader is determined more by putting people into their strength zones than by anything else, 7) Give them the ‘10’ treatment by: a) Building them up with encouragement, b) Giving them credit by acknowledgement, and c) Giving them recognition by gratitude.
To help those you are mentoring do better work, you must give them responsibility, authority and accountability. General George S. Patton once remarked, “Never tell people how to do things. Tell them what to do and they will surprise you with their ingenuity.”
One of the greatest mentoring tools we experience in our music school in Odessa, Texas is, after giving the student the information and training they need, to let them stand on their own two feet, releasing them to gain autonomy.
To create the right environment for mentoring, a leader should build trust (through day to day consistency), show transparency (being willing to admit mistakes rather than blaming others), offer time, believe in people, give encouragement, exhibit consistency, hold hope high, add significance, provide security, establish a support system (which includes skills training, money, equipment and personnel)
There is a major difference between ‘equipping’ people versus ‘developing’ people. ‘Equipping’ is based on your needs or those of the organization. ‘Developing’ is based on their needs. You give them what they need in order to become better people. To do that requires you to know people’s dreams and desires. Walter Lippman, founder of The New Republic, said, “Ignore what a man desires and you ignore the very source of his power.” Dreams are the generators of energy with your people. If they have high passion for their dreams, they have high energy. If you know what those dreams are and you develop them in a way that brings those dreams within reach, you not only harness that energy, but you also fuel it.”
The only scenario where there are no losses is when something is good for both the organization and the individual. That’s a recipe for long-term success. The way to accomplish this kind of win is to match up three things: 1) A goal, 2) A strength, and 3) An opportunity.
At our music school in Odessa, Texas we seek to partner with the student, finding common ground where our expertise can augment the student’s passion and artistic direction.
Finally, a good mentor celebrates the right ‘wins’ of the one he is mentoring. The Celebration Principle is: the true test of relationships is not only how loyal we are when friends fail, but how thrilled we are when they succeed.
Bet Middler said, “The worst part of success is trying to find someone who is happy for you.”
We should celebrate early and often with those closest to us- especially our spouse and children.
As usual, Maxwell concisely brings to light the subject of leadership and mentoring with clarity, using examples from his own personal journey as well as the experiences of others who have been successful. These principles, if applied will undoubtedly bring positive results.