The Power of Mentorship
By Heidi Sadecky, MA,PCC – Executive Coach & Director, Townsend Leadership Program
Being a successful leader or entrepreneur requires commitment, optimism, curiosity, and resilience. But perhaps most of all, success requires bringing others on board to learn from.
In the book, No One Succeeds Alone, the author, Robert Reffkin, recounts his story of how his trials and tribulations shaped his life as a leader and CEO. Through personal stories, Reffkin shares lessons he learned from his mentors, friends, coworkers, and even through antagonists in his life. His book resonates so strongly with me because of how much it speaks to the power of mentorship in a person’s life. I’ve dedicated my career to mentoring and coaching individuals and groups in their leadership skills.
Whether you get your start DJing bar mitzvahs like Robert Reffkin did, or you start with nothing but a dream for a better life, we all can learn from the mentors around us. Here are some ways in which you can make the most of what you’re taught by your mentors and those around you.
Find someone willing to give you critical feedback. We all need encouragement and a pat on the back from time to time; it’s what helps us keep going when the going gets tough. However, I have found that often the most valuable feedback is also the most difficult to hear. If you’re able to take criticism constructively, then even the most challenging comments can become your biggest assets! When you have a mentor who feels free to challenge your ideas, your leadership and your ideas will be all the stronger for it. Leadership coaching can do exactly that. Leadership coaching isn’t about pointing out weaknesses. It’s about leveraging a person’s strengths and providing opportunities for growth.
See every interaction and conversation as an opportunity to learn. The more that you proactively seek out possibilities and new relationships around you, the more leadership skills you can gather. Keep your eyes and ears open to learn from everyone around you. At the end of each day, after you’ve made new connections, it’s always a good idea to ask yourself, “what did I learn today?”
Work with your mentor, but leave any ego behind. We can often get in the way of ourselves. Have you ever been so focused on getting something right, or getting something done your way, that it may have taken away from your team completing the task? In your mentor relationships, do what you can to set yourself aside and learn humbly from the individual coaching you in leadership.
We all need mentors. The most successful people in life are those who learn everything they can from everyone around them. When you need help trying to become a better leader today than you were yesterday, you need the assistance of a dedicated and experienced mentor to build you up. I’m a leadership coach in Pittsburgh because I am passionate about helping people become the best leaders they can be. So, if you’re ready to take your abilities to the next level, I would be very glad to share my knowledge and experiences with you. Feel free to book a discovery call with me, and let’s talk about how professional coaching can grow your skill set and boost your strengths.
Heidi Sadecky is a highly-trained executive coach with over 30 years of combined corporate and coaching experience. She helps her clients operate at a higher level, overcome workplace challenges and achieve measurable results.
She is an in-demand facilitator of the only Townsend Leadership Program, a unique and highly effective group coaching program located in the North East United States.
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