I have been thinking about people who are better at doing what I do, and people who I would enjoy being around. I have been thinking about friends, mentors, and footsteps to follow.

First, we need someone we can respect, someone to gather knowledge from and bounce ideas off of.

When we check our ego at the door and allow ourselves to start learning again, we can ask God to send the right friends and mentors. 

Secondly, we have to keep our eyes open for the person or person(s) God sends.

When someone is younger, older, has a different career, or is not as well off as you, you may not recognize the friend or mentor. 

A friend will be trustworthy and bring out your best. A true mentor is succeeding in an area of life that you need to progress in.

I have asked God for mentors and friends we can respect.

The caution in finding mentors, friends, and colleagues is that sometimes we meet people and put our trust in them only to be incredibly disappointed with their interactions with us. 

We might start to mistrust out radar and think we don’t know how to choose friends much less mentors. Has this ever happened to you? 

Maybe you allowed a person who caused you trouble or grief into your life. Did you learn to be cautious and choose wisely in the future? 

If you learned to be more cautious about who you let into your life and the lives of your family, then there was progress.

Maybe you chose to allow someone into your life based on their charisma or how impressive their career seemed. Stop and think about that. Who are you choosing to spend time with and why?

I do think sometimes God allows us small mistakes in judgement to save us from the tragic. If we are open, he teaches us to recognize someone who is not a good mentor or even a good friend. 

Then there are those that are/were leaders in your life, because they were your boss or other person who had some authority over you.

 I have had some people in my life who were leaders that I thought needed a tune up.

I felt as if they needed to grow up and go to some classes on dealing with people. It was hard to function in those relationships. It was as if I were working with a child who needed direction themselves. My patience was honed to the extreme. Made me cautious. Made me think before allowing anyone new in my life. I learned to watch for signs of immaturity and lack of judgement. So, I learned some things. 

When you find yourself surrounded by leaders who don’t lead, you will learn something.

Are you stuck in the past where you look for the coolest person or the person who seems to have the most money?

Do you base success on the one who has the nicest house or car? Look around you. The most successful people don’t usually flaunt their success. They just live well.

In your mental list of successful people, you should include and highlight those raising emotionally healthy children and who have stable families.

Choose your mentors, colleagues, and friends well.

Spend time with the best in your field, collaborate, and share knowledge. When you choose a church, a job, an environment you will spend a lot of time in, choose well. 

When we check our egos at the door, we might learn something new…a good thing.

Barefoot and writing, 

Kim

Choose friends and mentors wisely.