The Rare Skill of Succeeding

People who consistently succeed have a secret. Actually, it is more of a skill. True, this is a rare skill, which is why only a few people have it. What is this skill, this rare knowledge that almost always creates consistent success for anyone who applies it?

The rare skill of succeeding starts with having a Great Mentor. Bill Gates’ great mentor was Warren Buffett, Steve Jobs’ great mentor was Andy Grove, and Andrew Carnegie’s great mentor was Thomas Scott. Find a person with the rare skill of succeeding, over and over, and you’ll always find a great mentor helping them in this incredible process.

But to have a great mentor, these leaders first had to engage the skill of finding a great mentor. This is the rare skill. Learn this skill, and your life of successes is assured. Miss out on this skill, and all your hard work will likely only bring minimal results.

But we’re getting ahead of ourselves. Let’s back up and really understand how this works.

Mentors in History

In mythology, Athena, the Greek goddess of warfare, courage, and wisdom, took the form of King Odysseus’ steward named Mentor. Odysseus had been fighting in the Trojan War for 20 years and his wife and home were being bombarded by suitors for the supposed widow. Mentor, or Athena, stepped in and guided Odysseus’ son, Telemachus, in how to “take care of” those pesky suitors. And then challenged him and encouraged him on a grand adventure to discover the fate of his father. Much of the success and greatness achieved by Telemachus was due to his mentor.

In Greek, the word “mentor” means “one who thinks” or “one who admonishes.” Henry Ford is attributed with saying, “Thinking is the hardest work there is, which is probably the reason so few people engage in it.” “Admonish” is no light term—it is to firmly warn or reprimand. Having a mentor means business! The factor that Mentor was a god in disguise in mythology is a pretty big deal. This suggests a real stewardship, authority, and divine intervention tied to seeking out and submitting to a thinking-admonisher.

When I got thinking about this relationship and how long ago it was considered so important, I started looking at other great men and women throughout history and picked the brain of my mentors to see if it really was such a big deal.

What did I discover?

As mentioned before, behind every Great Anybody is a great mentor. Alexander the Great’s great mentor was Aristotle, Thomas Jefferson’s great mentor was George Wythe, and Mahatma Gandhi’s great mentor was Dadabhai Naoroji.

Mentor Mindset

Simply saying, “Yeah, I have a mentor” is not the point. The history of mentoring teaches us:

-          We’re seeking out those wise thinkers who firmly admonish us out of our mediocre ruts and demand greatness from us.

-          Great mentors invest their time in someone who will consistently traverse the path of success.

-          A mentor does not allow a settle-for life.

-          Even through Socrates is considered one of the wisest men, still, he professed that this was only because he knew he was ignorant—a mentor is always progressing himself.

-          A mentor is able to give outside perspective, be emotionally unattached to the situation, teach and expound principles that connect to the scenario, and give challenging assignments to get through slumps and low points.

-          It can be very helpful to seek specific mentoring from someone who has mastered your own trade.

Mentors Have Results

One of my mentors explained it to me this way: In life we’re smack-dab in the middle of a minefield. If we’re trying to make it to a particular point on the other side of this minefield—which might be success, greatness, mission, service, debt-free, flourishing business, etc.—then what might be the fastest way there? Just picking a way and walking won’t get you very far. Using tools to find the mines and mark a safe passage is very dangerous and extremely time-consuming. My mentor then pointed out that following an experienced mentor’s footsteps through the minefield allows us to move very proficiently and effectively.

The benign relationship of Watson and Sherlock Holmes is a great example of following in someone’s footsteps through a minefield. Watson would draw some conclusions that appeared true on the surface, because what else could have explained it? Sherlock admonished Watson not to take the evidence as indisputable proof for what he believed or wanted to be true, but to take the full evidence and facts to tell what the reality is. In other words, deductive reasoning is much more accurate than inductive reasoning. This enabled them to solve so many mysteries—and ultimately, achieve great success.

Mentors Admonish Greatness

Being around, following, and submitting to a great mentor brings us face to face with greatness in every aspect of our lives. We rub shoulders with someone who is great, and they help pull out the greatness in what we read, what we listen to, the ups and downs of our daily life experiences, and the people we come in contact with.

Then, we become great ourselves. And, in time, we can master the rare skill of succeeding.