Have you ever wanted to excel in life and reach your full potential? Have you ever thought or considered having a mentor or coach to guide you through and in life? Have you ever wanted to be connected to the most known and powerful mentors and leaders in the world to learn from? Without the right mentors and leaders in our lives, we will never reach our full potential.
Yet mentorship is in need of a massive change and transformation. It can no longer be defined by the person to person, face to face interaction. It looks different, feels different and even has a whole different level of possibility.
When I look at my life though, one thing is constant, I attribute most of where I am to the people in my past that I gave a place to speak into my life. Ok, what does that mean? Well, it was the books I read, the people I’ve met and the experiences that I have had that have attributed to me being able to go from a limited mentorship mindset of a few people in my life to 100s of people that were experts in their fields.
That’s why today I want to share with you five reasons why it’s so important for mentorship in your mind to change and why when it changes it will help you reach your fullest potential in life. I will share how to innovate and transfer to the new mentorship model while honoring and utilizing the aspects of the traditional model that still work.
So, what does the best mentorship look like? It’s accessing people’s wisdom and life that have what you want, have gone where you want to go and those that teach you to live life from purpose. It’s someone that is going to be real, raw and relevant. It’s transparency and vulnerability. It’s sharing the secrets, tips, and tricks to learning from failure and shortcomings so you don’t have to experience them. It’s someone obsessed with purpose that selfishly wants you to succeed more than anything. It’s being able to have someone help you build a plan for your future and then give you all the tools to help make it all a reality.
For me some of them I knew personally yet for the most part they never even met me because they had either long passed or were public leaders that their message had impacted my life through their videos, books or podcasts.
I remember graduating from high school and college and later realizing I wasn’t at all prepared for life. For me and most people, there was not a single tool that helped develop or discover my passions, my purpose, my dreams, or gave me the opportunity to understand how valuable it is to invest in my mind, heart, and soul. Nothing. All school did is hand me irrelevant facts and equations to memorize that added zero value to real life application on the job for accounting.
Everyone knows that in high school and college you will learn subjects, you’ll learn the curriculum, you’ll progress in your ability to use numbers, complete a scantron and define and memorize facts but there aren’t classes that build powerful human beings. What does this mean? Well, classes about life skills that matter most in the workplace, teaching you how to balance a budget for your family and personal life or interactive learning experiences to have you discover your purpose in life. Nothing that allows you to invest into your future or learn how to become a healthy and whole person in life.
So my question has been, “What’s actually teaching people how to do you life?” “What’s educating people on how to live out their dreams?” “What’s helping people find their purpose?” “What’s out there that you can digest that’s practical, real, raw, and relevant to help you become the best human being on the planet?”
What’s helping parents become better moms and dads and children to have high aspirations for their life and create a value for how to give back to those in need? How are brothers, sisters, friends, cousins, family members, employees, bosses and the like learning how to become great contributors to society?
To be honest, not many things. That is why mentorship has been so valuable because you can sit in front of someone that you have a relationship with and have them speak into the unspoken areas of your life.
When it comes to mentorship though there was still something missing in the traditional model that was limited to time and space. I saw that an unlimited model could become available that was more empowering, that would be more relational and even more impactful for both the mentee and mentor.
So, Here are the five reasons why mentorship must change to see it’s fullest capability and potential in your life.
1. The Playing Field Needs To Be Leveled.
The traditional model was a person with more power and experience and it was a one-way street, the new model the playing fields were leveled and it was friendship at its best. In the new model, both parties had an interest and return they received by investing the time in the mentorship. When there is someone in power and someone not in power it’s a predator-prey type of model. This has one person empowered with all the answers and authority and one disempowered, constantly hashing their insufficiencies.
When the playing field is leveled both parties are seeking the answers. Both have questions and both desire to seek the answer.
I noticed that there are very few programs, curriculum or people that we have access to with this type of dynamic interaction. Types of people that could help us beyond a cookie-cutter program, low level of quality feedback content that challenges others to rise to their purpose and potential.
The solutions being given to people are Band-Aids on an open wound. People have massive cuts and scars emotionally, relationally, mentally, psychologically, and spiritually and they’re searching for life’s most difficult answers. The solution many offers is a better paying job or going to school and graduating yet isn’t there something more tangible that we can create for people to not only have powerful mentors but lead their life with purpose.
2. The Man In The Mirror
In the old model, it resembles a man on the stage, pounding his or her check saying look at me and look what I’ve done. The student sees the mentor as a source of strength and inspiration where in the new model the man in the mirror becomes the source of strength and inspiration. The new model is unlimited in the fact that the responsibility isn’t on the mentor to give the answer but the mentee to seek that answer out.
People often allow the outside and external to drive their vision and passion when the greatest visions, goals, and dreams come from within. We were not to allow someone else to be our source of strength and in the new model of mentorship, it is an empowering model where you are the source. Where you have the power and capability and ultimately the mentor and the mentee learn to have one thing in common, to overcome and continue to overcome is the reason someone can be on the stage. The stage is just a byproduct of being in the mirror.
3. Going Limited To Unlimited
I created a podcast called the Dreamcast. It’s where I interview people of significance and purpose and extract their life lessons and wisdom. I have had the privilege of interacting with some of the highest achievers, earners, celebrities and social names and they have been my life mentors. They have shared their secrets off and on the air and have poured into my life.
They have shared their vulnerabilities, their humanity and been authentic to their core to what it takes to live a life of purpose. I don’t know where I’d be without them yet what about the masses that wouldn’t be able to access these minds and hearts? What about those that would have the time to connect or even get connected to them?
Well the traditional model was that you can only be mentored by someone in your hometown and when they have the time to talk with you. It had to be only once in a month, quarter or year but this is so limited. The new model is being able to access the greatest minds and lives in the universe anytime anywhere. When your on the road, late at night before you fall asleep and in your car. You could tune into leaders that were honest, real and open about what it takes to be the greatest in your industry and field of work. This is unlimited. This is unstoppable. This takes away the excuses to challenge yourself to be and give your best.
4. Step by Step
All of this drove me to build our program Pioneer Purpose. I had the opportunity to gather 100s of the greatest minds in the world from all different industry leaders and package their life lessons in one program. We built out 12 courses each with 4 lessons and multiple topics about how to discover and then build a plan around your purpose. Ok so what does this all mean. Well the old model is sitting with someone in a meeting for an hour or coffee or lunch and talking. You talk, they talk, they talk, you talk. Maybe you talk more, maybe they talk more but what’s accomplished? Well, not much.
In the new model, there is a step by step, honed in process and framework to keep you focused on the next step to you finding and living purpose each day. It’s creating a funnel that takes you through the 12 core areas of life that are needed for change, growth, and development. This is a game changer because the difference between building a massive building and building a small one? Well, it’s the plan that needs to be built to build to architect that great building.
The step by step program is a planning and life architecting tool for you to reach higher than you ever thought you could. The reality is that so many are looking for meaning but since there are few resources that freely and powerful communicate how to find purpose and meaning people are unable to invest in themselves and on a whole new level and scale and they are missing out on the purpose they were to experience in life.
5. Action and Internalize
In life, we need great friends, people that are going to be honest with us people that are not going to sugarcoat what we need to hear. Sadly enough those that love us most will likely not tell it as it is because they don’t want to hurt us or maybe we wont be able to receive what they say. But we need mentors that are going to call us out because they care about us. Maybe we’re being lazy or distracted or not giving our best.
Coaches that are not afraid to look you in the eye and say you can do better, you could give more, you could be more, we all need coaches we all need guides and leaders who are powerful influencers in our lives.
The beauty of the new model is that it’s not the traditional learn by listening, it’s the learn by doing and learn by engaging. Sometimes in the traditional model its difficult for the mentor to look you in the eyes and tell you what you need to hear. Giving your specific steps to build into your life the culture, values and principles needed to get you far in life isn’t an easy process for friends, mentors or leaders to do face to face.
Yet in the new model, we have created its full of Call to Purpose’s that challenge you to do what you learn. These are the call to actions that spur you to change and transformation.
You’ll be challenged and required to internalize each lesson through customized Frequently Avoided Questions. Not traditional FAQs, the questions everyone asks but those that we ask least that bring out our best in life. We have supplemental learning, audio teachings, recommended book reading and extra resources that we have never given to anyone. This was our idea of what real mentorship will be in the future. This is our online mentorship program.
Something that spurred you to action and helped you internalize and customize the wisdom you learned through questions that you answered about where you were at in the process.
6. Tribe, Community, and Family
Let’s face it. We don’t know what best for our lives, if we did we would never fail, be disappointed, regret, apologize or feel like we could do it over. What we must realize is that if someone cares about us and can speak into our lives objectively their wisdom and opinion is the most important.
Remember who impacts us the most in life isn’t our teachers. bosses or employers but our coaches, mentors, leaders and friends. It’s a community and tribe of people we call family because they understand us at our depth, even if we know them little. WHY? Because there’s a sense that they care, that we matter to them, that they are invested in our success. Now your teachers, bosses, and employers can impact you greatly but most likely they were playing one of the other roles in your life.
In Conclusion:
I leave you with this. What I have realized is that most don’t have someone they can go to comfortability or maybe that person doesn’t have the time. Others can find a leader or mentor for the life of them but maybe you don’t need a relational connection to that person. The reason is because it’s so healthy and powerful to go to someone that doesn’t know who you are so that we can be honest with what they think.
We need mentors that believe in us, to push us to the most extreme limits and it can be difficult when they know your struggles or shortcomings. Sometimes you just want to go pour your heart out to someone that doesn’t know anything about you or know anyone you know so you can feel safe enough, to be honest with how you feel and what you’re going through and that’s what I want to be for you.
Again my name is Daniel Budzinski and I want to be your guide, your coach your mentor and friend to help you discover your purpose, make your dream a reality and become the greatest version of yourself.
And I mean it with all of my heart that I care. I care about you, I care about your future I care about your family and career, I care about your struggles and frustrations and most of all I care about your journey. That you would live a life that screams purpose and joy. That your end would just be great but that your journey would be great as well.
Let me speak into your life, into your future and give you the coaching and guidance to walk out a life worth living. Let me pour into some of the most unspoken topics that we all need to hear if we want to reach our full potential. Let me mentor your destiny and I can promise you that you will not regret having me as your friend and partner to living out your dreams.
I am so thankful to the mentors, leaders, guides coaches and friends that have played a powerful role in impacting my future and developing my life. Those that saw my passion and helped me discover my purpose. Those that knew the dream was big in my life and helped me make it real.