Much Ado About Mentorship

I’ve considered myself a maverick for as long as I can remember, thoroughly relishing the thrill of paving my own path and going the extra mile. Growing up, there were very few things I dreaded more than being ordinary. In my juvenile, prepubescent eyes, if anything could be described as common, lacklustre or mediocre (I particularly loathed this word) then one thing was certain; that thing – whatever it was – definitely wasn’t for me.

So it might make sense for me to have been disappointed each time any of my primary school teachers would occasionally ask the class who their role model was and – not unlike virtually every other member of the class – the best I could come up with was “my parents”, no matter how hard I tried.

But I wasn’t disappointed, not in the least. On the contrary – even if only in that instance – I felt mighty proud... because that was the truth. And almost two decades later, it still is.

Martin Luther King Jr. Nelson Mandela. Nick Vujicic. Barack Obama. These are some of the many people (apart from my folks, of course) whose lives have notably inspired many different aspects of mine over the years. But in this era when your potential for success is largely measured by who your mentor is (and, rather interestingly, your preparedness for marriage by how many books on marriage you’ve read – God help us) my philosophy about mentorship would seem rather insufficient. The way it seems these days, you just must have a role model whose path you’re meticulously toeing if you’re going to succeed.

So if you’re one of the myriads of success-oriented young people who are particular about choosing the right mentor, kindly consider this:

The ambitious fledgling sparrow can admire the strength, bravery and dignified gait of the lion all she wants. Heck, she could even learn a thing or two about confidence and authority by her association with him.

But you know what she’ll never ever learn from the undisputed king of the jungle? That’s right – how to fly!

There really isn’t much more to say, my friend. Don’t be the courageous, power-yielding, respect-commanding sparrow that unfortunately cannot fly.

If you must have mentors, please choose them wisely!

Blessings...