Feeling empowered, cared for, learned, poured into, and impacted are all words used to describe mentoring. January is National Mentor Month, a campaign held each January to promote mentoring the next generation in America. While being a mentor might sound scary or like you need a certificate of qualification – your time and life experiences will go a long way in leading the youth of America to be successful. Let’s dive into what it means to be a mentor.
Mentors come in all shapes and sizes. From church leaders to business executives, to a mom and pop shop owner to a kindergarten teacher – all careers, levels of expertise and experience count! Mentorship is simply taking time to lean into a young member of the community and spend time talking and teaching them from your experience. The role of a mentor is to provide guidance, motivation, emotional support and to be a role model. As a mentor you could help a mentee explore a career they are interested in, you could help set goals, develop characteristics and identify resources that would be useful.
Now that you have a good understanding of what a mentor is, can you think of a mentor in your life? Maybe you never thought of this person in that way – but they are a source of inspiration and sound wisdom when you approach a roadblock or are in the process of making a tough decision. Now let’s turn the tables, can you think of someone that needs a mentor? Someone who is venturing through life and could use a guide who is passionate about helping others?
With your answers in mind, let’s conquer some fears together. There are many, many Sand Springs community members that both need a mentor, and need to be a mentor. But why is it so hard to make the initial step of meeting someone new – or setting up a time to meet at the coffee shop? The answer is simple > the majority of us suffer from continuous thoughts of “What will they think” or “I’m not good enough for that”. While those thoughts may run rampant through your head, it’s time to put a stop to these lies! It’s a proven fact that we need the community around us, haven’t you heard of the phrase, “It takes a village”? If you are struggling with these things, take a moment to write down your strengths, your experiences you can draw from, your knowledge of your career and business. Build confidence and make a difference in the lives of the young Sandites around you!
There are many opportunities when it comes to mentoring in Sand Springs. Of course our public school system has many volunteer opportunities, the Case Community Center has a full calendar of events to get involved with, the Sand Springs Chamber of Commerce, local churches, schools, colleges and our local Rotary Club! You can even mentor from the comfort of your own home with online mentoring!
We encourage you to take a step out of our comfort zone in the new year, meet someone new and lean into sharing your experiences so you can help shape the upcoming generation.
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