I have been very fortunate throughout my life to have amazing people help me and guide me on my path in life. Looking back, it is amazing to see how small events and decisions followed by daily dedication, have led me to the position I am in now. I was lucky enough to play basketball and get an education at the best University in the country (http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Eat-Your-Heart-Out-Harvard-Stanford-stakes-2828795.php). Starting with my parents and continuing with teachers, coaches, and community members, I have learned something from everyone I have encountered that has impacted where I am today.
Recently, I have started to give basketball lessons to kids in the bay area and it has opened my eyes to how lucky I was growing up with such great coaches. I wonder if I would have made it as a D1 basketball player if I didn't get the right coaching and training when I was younger. Many of the kids that I work with come to me with bad habits or no fundamental basketball skills at all, yet they are pushed to play at high competitive levels. More often than not these kids will burn out and never realize a true love or passion for organized sports.
All this background is to say that mentors are in everyone's life. The people around you are the ones who will influence and impact you in ways that will affect the rest of your life whether you know it or not. No matter what stage of life you are in, mentors are important for your continual growth and success.
Again, I am lucky to be continually surrounded by amazing people because they inspire me to do amazing things and I see what is possible. I have friends starting their own companies, I have friends playing professional sports all because they knew it was possible. They weren't able to do these things alone. They had mentors and teachers who believed in them and showed them how to problem solve. Belief is a powerful motivator, but a lack of belief can wear away at you and keep you from rising to your highest level. If you live in a place where the norm is to work a 9-5 job that you could care less about but it pays the bills, but you once dreamt of going out and starting your own company, it will be a lot harder to break out of that daily grind because everyone else is doing it and there won't be many people who will be able to guide you and hold you accountable. Or if the norm among your friends and family is that school isn't that important and you don't ever hear or think about college, chances are you wont continue to learn. If you are surrounded by despair, either you will stay in that area and be consumed by it, or you will detest it so much that you will remove it from your life.
I have so many thoughts going through my head on this subject because I have really seen the power of my immediate surroundings on the outcome of my life, but most people aren't as lucky as I was. Most people are surrounded by people who will bring them down or keep them at the status quo. It is my job (and yours) to pay forward the blessings and insights we have gained to become successful. If you were fortunate enough to have someone pull/push you up to where you are more successful or happier than you thought possible in any area of your life than it is your responsibility to mentor someone who is less fortunate than you. For me, it is working with kids through basketball to teach them the skills they need to be successful, but also the character traits that I have learned from my mentors that have helped me be successful. If you are reading this and you aren't as happy or as successful as you would like to be, I encourage you to seek out mentors that can help you achieve your goals in life.
The problem is not that there aren't enough good people or knowledgeable people, the problem is that many of those people don't stand up and mentor.
***I am very new to blogging and putting my thoughts on paper. ANY comments and feedback are much appreciated. On my journey, I know that I can't always wait to be perfect at something before starting so hopefully it will be a quick learning curve.