Just leaving the stage one day; many years back, after delivering a very captivating one-man theatrical presentation, I was met backstage while in the artiste changing room by one of the artiste attendants and asked: "Sir, do you know ...? (Mentions name) "Yes I do..." (Smiling) I responded as I straightened out my tie, knowing where the inquiry was headed as I get such inquiries often, shortly after I'm done acting on stage or speaking or Compeering (an event) before an audience. I added..."he is my mentor" "Ehn...ehn!" (He exclaimed) "I said it! I saw that on the stage. You act like him." (He said). "Thank you" I said in response. I have come to accept such remarks as compliments. While it may be a compliment in a way, I will tell you what I reckon it actually means. It means there is an almost in-differentiable similarity in the way my mentor and I act on stage. Now, please let us not trivialise this peculiar and vital eye-opening truth I am about unveiling here by putting this down to mean one party must have been copying another. That will be grossly missing the point and may be missing out totally on the core of the issue I am dealing with in this edition.
At the said time, I had been under the tutelage of that mentor of mine for about two years. I had rapidly learnt a lot from him in my acting craft, turned my once raw and crude talent into admirable skill and steadily getting better. Yet, without any formal University degree in theatre practice at the time, though I was a already a University graduate in another field. Modestly speaking, I had surpassed some of my colleagues equally under my mentor's tutelage at the time who had been with him longer than I had. I wouldn't say I was more brilliant, or intelligent than them as it were, but I had latched unto an 'unpopular' secret on the pathway to rapid and excellent grooming in mentorship that some of them were yet to come to terms with. At the time, if there was to be any form of ranking among my my mentor's proteges based on the time of commencement of our mentorship programmes with him individually, I would have ranked the least among all of us then. Hence I would have been the most junior of us all, and I was. This reflected in the (administrative) assignments and responsibilities apportioned to each member of the team. However, sometimes (and gradually it became most times) my mentor began issuing certain official responsibilities to me which was way beyond my 'rank', while my 'seniors' were there. At times, that my mentor could not honour some invitations to go act, speak or Compeer some events, he will bypass my 'seniors' and send me to go on his behalf! (Though theatre was the core of our business in our organisation at the time, we also offered speaking and Compere services on the side). It was surprising yet elating for me to be singled out before and among my 'superiors'. Casting my mind down memory lane, at any of those opportunities to go professionally represent my mentor, I met his expectations and sometimes surpassed them. Glowing feedbacks from our clients sent to my mentor spoke volume of this. My mentor had recognised in me what I later realised which is what I intend sharing with you my dear friend in this edition.
We were all equally talented, brilliant, creative, resourceful, diligent, dogged and more...but I had discovered and was applying something that some of my colleagues were yet to discover. What is this 'unpopular' but potent secret my dear friend? I had discovered that at the core of excellence in being groomed as a protege (who soon will become another authority personally and professionally to be modelled after) in mentorship programme is the 'catching' and operating "IN THE SPIRIT OF YOUR MENTOR."
Ordinarily in mentorship, what we have learnt is that this is a (destiny) relationship which exists between a more experienced fellow (mentor) in a particular area of life and a less experienced fellow (protege) in the same area who needs the guidance of the more experienced fellow. In this relationship, the younger in experience latches on the experience, maturity, influence, clout etc. of his or her mentor to navigate in needed area of life. Through this regular interaction, the younger in experience acquires skills, experience and gradually becomes better in the said area of life. This is the picture of what mentorship is in a nutshell as we have learnt. I concur that this remains true. However, one unknown or unpopular aspect that has remained unknown to many proteges and even some mentors is the spirit dimension in mentorship. Mentorship is MORE THAN just the instructing, guiding, showing, grooming, bequeathing of skills or sharing experiences with a younger (in experience) fellow. While it is that no doubt, BUT it is the spirit dimension that is the MOST potent aspect of this relationship and that which makes all the instructing, guiding, showing, grooming, bequeathing of skills or sharing of experience to deliver potently and doubtlessly! Short of the spirit, mentorship relationship becomes no different from any other social affair. It is understanding the spirit dimension of mentorship and rightly appropriating it that helps any protege to make the most of mentorship and become an authority that will influence others and also be modelled after by many.
Many proteges and even mentors are delivering in their pursuit far below capacity today because a number of them (like some of my colleagues back then under my mentor's tutelage) are yet to understand and latch unto this mystery of the spirit. I call it a mystery because it is STILL hidden to many, unknown to others, not understood by some, or outrightly rejected by other 'very knowledgeable' folks who find this kind of school of thought weird. But I have learnt that: "the greatest hindrance to knowledge is NOT ignorance, but illusion of knowledge." Thinking we know when we don't at all or know as we should. It is my optimistic hope that I will be able to through this edition mid-wife your understanding in this school of thought and wean you from the company of proteges who have the potential to be more but are yet to be (because they are yet to latch unto to the spirit dimension) to the company of those who are becoming (from phase to phase) ALL they can be personally and professionally in their destiny pursuits. Please may I say, because it is STILL hidden to many, unknown to others, not understood by some, or outrightly rejected by other 'very knowledgeable' folks who find this kind of school of thought weird DOES NOT mean it is not POTENT! I the author of this article is an experiential witness and a grateful beneficiary. Welcome therefore, my dear friend to the spirit dimension in mentorship; the POTENT dimension.
There are two worlds that exist that I will like to focus on here with which I will share on what the spirit is. There is the seen or physical world and there is the unseen or spirit world. As real as the seen or physical world is to us, and it is real I reckon, but the unseen or spirit world is more real or tangible than the seen or physical world. In the creation of the universe, the unseen or spirit world existed first before the seen or physical world. The unseen or spirit world gave birth to the seen or physical world. Hence, nothing exists or happens in the seen or physical world that does not first exist or happen in the unseen or spirit world. Victory or defeat, triumph or trial, success or failure, progress or stagnation, increase or decrease, riches or poverty, abundance or lack, blessing or curse and more all existed first in the unseen or spirit world. Even you and I, as desires to be had by our parents as children first existed in the unseen or spirit world before the seen or physical world.
The Spirit is an unseen but real, tangible and potent source and force pregnant with all realities that may be desirable by mankind. Resident in the spirit are all the desires that man may choose to acquire; financial, material, career, business, marital etc. For any desire of man to be rightly located, the spirit is the source to be contacted. All you and I may ever desire in life are situated in the spirit. Until you and I are able to access the spirit, our desires in life remain a mirage. The frustration of mankind in having all he desires, mostly is in his inability to access the spirit to 'shop' for them.
In addition, the spirit is not just the source of all of mankind's desires, but also the force that births those desires from the unseen or spirit realm where they are situated to the seen or physical world where they are needed. So accessing the spirit is not just all we have as responsibility to have our desires, but also ACTIVATING that force.
If making the most of mentorship through accessing the treasures that your mentor bears is your desire, then catching and operating IN THE SPIRIT OF YOUR MENTOR is a must!
-Attributes Of The Spirit-
1. The spirit is a potent force that can't be seen with the naked eyes but who's effect can't be denied when accessed and activated.
2. When accessed and activated its irrepressible force can't be stopped from bringing to pass the desire that has been placed on it to deliver from the unseen or spirit to the seen or physical world.
3. Its force is capable of delivering desires beyond human knowledge, intellect, wisdom or skill.
4. When all human efforts fail in the pursuit of a desire ordinarily achievable by human effort, the spirit is that never failing, ever reliable and dependable ally to consult.
Talent is one treasure that divinity bequeathed to humanity so as to become productive and enviable citizens of the earth. Over the millenniums of the existence of the human race this has been seen. From time immemorial till date, being talented in one area or the other and trading with that or those talent(s) makes one not just profitably rewarded but enviably esteemed. Talent or being talented is a potent treasure that stands one out in life. That is still a truism (to an extent) today. I submit as one who is fortunate to be endowed with talents in a number of areas by Providence. However, in the passage of time in our ever dynamic world things are changing. While talent is still relevant in our dispensation and the talented is still celebrated, sadly, talent has become a dime a dozen in our times. As 'potent' as talent or being talented may be I have seen many in our times that are talented yet are frustrated! Many are gifted yet have become grounded. While being talented or gifted is still relevant, it has lost the supremacy of it's potency to another. We are no longer in the age of the supremacy of the talented or the gifted, we are in the age of the spirited. To be talented or gifted is no longer enough, you must graduate to being spirited! To be talented (alone) is to be frustrated. To be gifted alone is to be grounded! Until you become spirited, you remain limited. To be talented (alone) is to be limited. To become unlimited you must become spirited! We are in the age of the spirited, where it is the spirited that dictates the pace in the world of personal and professional excellence, influence and significance. In all fields today, it is the spirited that are taking over and dictating the pace for the (just) talented.
Who are these rare breeds of the spirited? They are those who (may also be talented) but have realised that dominance in personal and professional life (in this dispensation) will require more than just being talented but being spirited and have caught unto the new age move of being spirited. They are a crop of pathfinders, trailblazers, pacesetters and trendsetters who are dominating in personal and professional life (from all walks of life) not by their talents, intellect, skills or experience as it were, but through the force of the spirit! Being spirited has made them unstoppable breeds; dominating over all affairs of their life personally and professionally, not by human ability but by divine ability made available to them by their access to the unseen or spirit world and engaging it's force in their affairs. They are a breed of people who by their access to the spirit world now have access to solutions to personal and professsinal challenges such as "eyes have not seen, ears have not heard, neither has it entered into the hearts of men!" Men with solution unusual. These are crop of fellows who have realised that the current realities of human personal and professional challenges have defied human talents, intellect, skills, wisdom or experience but require a higher force and help to stand out and dominate in the midst of mortals. How true? The current challenges and realities that we grapple with in our times at work, business, career, home etc. are beyond academic qualification, academic intellect, skills etc. hence the need to enlist the help of a higher and more formidable ally if we must remain relevant in personal and professional scheme of things. If you desire to leave the company of the just talented that are frustrated, if you desire to move from being limited in personal and professional life to becoming unlimited, if you desire to access solutions unusual that eyes have not seen, ears have not heard, nor has entered into the hearts of men, if you desire to join the company of pathfinders, trailblazers, pacesetters and trendsetters (who have become high flyers) dominating in personal and professional life and to make a mark in this dispensation too difficult to erase, becoming spirited for you is a must! It is the age of the spirited! If you must make the most of mentorship therefore, surpassing your predecessors and setting the pace for them as my case was with my 'seniors' under my mentor's tutelage years back, we can't over flog this can we? Being spirited is it!
* Why Do You Need The Spirit Of Your Mentor?
Man is a tripartite being who is essentially a spirit, he has a soul and lives in a house called body. The real man is NOT the soul or body but the spirit. How do I mean? Have you ever noticed that when someone dies and his corpse is referred to during burial the deceased is not addressed by his or her name? But the expression, the 'body'. For example as it is in an obituary publication; "body leaves his family house for the church at 8am." Note, it will never be referred as (assuming the deceased's name was John), "the body of John leaves his family house for church", but "body leaves..." What does this connote? When a human being dies, the body becomes lifeless, because what gives it life has left. That thing that gives the body life is the spirit. This connotes that the real John is not that body but the spirit. The real you and I is our spirit. What gives your mentor the life you admire which produces all the results that you desire in him or her which endeared you to him or her is his or her spirit. As earlier discussed that the spirit is the source of all the desires that man may choose to acquire; financial, material, career, business, marital etc., what you desire from your mentor in terms of experience, wisdom, skill etc. will require that you 'go after' his or her spirit which is the source of all that you desire. Please remember that these deires of yours will not just be available to you as you catch your mentor's spirit, but it will take same spirit to activate these treasures tapped from your mentor for them to be in operation in your life and deliver for you the order of results (personally and professionally) for which you've been endeared to your mentor.
* Exploring The Process-
Please note in the first instance, that catching the spirit of your mentor is your sole responsibility as a protege. You are the one who needs it and so must go after it. What does the process of catching this spirit require?
Among other things, mentorship is God's wisdom of advancing HIS agenda from one generation to another by the transference of HIS grace from one vessel to another. This is why the place of the spirit in actualising this can't be taken for granted. In one of the previous editions on this blog, I discussed on the six steps to follow in locating your mentor. The fifth and sixth talked about "spiritual compatibility with your (would-be mentor)" and "divine guidance." This brings back to the fore the truth that mentorship relationship is essentially a spiritual relationship. In addition to other steps such as "he or she must be a person of result (i.e. Successful) "he or she must share your field", "the result or his or her success must be progressive (must be a succeeding success)", he or she must be a person of integrity", there is need for you and this mentor of yours to be spiritually compatible, because if he or she is of a negative spirit his or her spirit will 'corrupt' you as you are the one receiving from him or her and hence render impotent all you might have acquired fron him or her through the mentorship process. The positive spirit is the spirit of the Almighty God. So when I talk about spiritual compatibilty I mean if you are already compatible with God spiritually (among other things; you have given God the full leadership of your life) you must ensure that whoever you choose as a mentor must also be spiritually compatible with God. Why? If the spirit is the source of all you need to access from your mentor, that source I talk about is first the SPIRIT of God. It will take your mentor's spirit being in compatibilty with that of God before you will be able to tap into it from your mentor's spirit as you 'go after' it. The original source therefore is the Spirit of God. You may therefore query, why don't I therefore tap all my desires directly from God's spirit? It has been God's self-styled approach to sometimes use or need a medium to deliver to us the treasures that make for our earthly relevance. Mentorship is one of those areas this approach of HIS is HIS major medium of grace transference.
1. Receive Your Mentor-
No one learns from the one he envies or despises. You can only learn from the one you admire or accept. One wise saying goes: "What you respect you attract. What you don't respect you repel." The mentor you don't respect never expect to receive from. Please permit me to draw your attention to the fact that your mentor is not a perfect person. NO mentor is, because he or she is but human like you and I. This is what I call the irony of mentorship; using an imperfect person to groom another into a 'perfect' (better) person. History and the experience of some like me proves that it works. Receiving your mentor means receiving him or her with his or her strengths and weaknesses or shortcomings. One error a number of proteges make is that they often see their mentors as perfect personalities or flawless people. This is understandable because, a number of times the results (successes), track record, image, influence or clout of the mentor can be so larger than life or overwhelming before a protege that may just be starting out in the path of destiny or have started out but has far less experience or result. However, this is not true. With all profound respect to our mentors, as admirable and impressive their success, track record or influence may be, they have flaws. Sometimes it will take a while of consistent and close interaction in your relationship with your mentor to ever see any of his or her flaws. But it is not for you to focus on or else you may be distracted from your main aim of following your mentor. I was fortunate to learn this early in my mentorship relationship with my mentors. In addition, this instilled in me a loyalty that will never let me condone anyone speak ill of my mentors before me. Note that if you despise the messenger (your mentor) you will miss the message (what he or she possesses that can benefit you in destiny). If you despise your mentor therefore for any of his or her shortcomings you are bound to miss out on catching his spirit let alone operating in it. You must therefore receive your mentor as you found him or her to be (given the fact that he or she meets the six qualities a preferred mentor should have as earlier mentioned though) or else you won't be able to receive what he or she possesses (spiritually).
2. Believe In What Your Mentor Possesses-
Beyond receiving your mentor you should believe in what he or she possesses (that is his or her spirit that you intend to catch or tap into). It is only what you believe that you receive. What you don't believe you don't receive. To receive your mentor and not believe in what he or she possesses is to resist what he or she possesses. Your faith in what your mentor possesses (to be able to deliver for you the same order of results-successes that he or she possesses) is what commands for you that same order of divine ability o deliver same.
3. Receive Your Mentor's Spirit-
The receiving of your mentor and believing in what your mentor possesses prepare you for receiving your mentor's spirit. Receiving your mentor's spirit, in addition to the aforementioned, your thirst for your mentor's spirit marks your qualification for receiving same. What you don't thirst for never expect to receive. It amuses and amazes me when I see some proteges thirst for or covet the material possessions that their mentor possess rather than thirsting after or coveting the source of these possessions or the force that produces it. It is no news that increasingly in our current times, there are many parasites in the cloak of proteges. They carefully seek for and follow mentors for what material benefits they can get from or through them. From my years of experience (not because I have been a victim of this faux pas, but because I have seen scores of proteges shot themselves in the foot with this myopic motive as their goal.) Some current co-proteges of mine under the tutelage of one of my mentors are guilty of this error and some others that I mentor (my proteges).
Two years ago while taking a postgraduate refresher course in one of Nigeria's prestigious tertiary institutions, it was humbling for me that many of my colleagues (during the course of our interaction) in that course recognised the modest and admirable budding success that I had made of my career and business at the time. Due to this, a number of them requested that I mentor them. Whilst we were finalising modalities for this, I found out one of them had the intention of me mentoring him for the wrong reasons. Paraphrasing his words : "Once he learns a few things from me and GETS SOME CONNECTIONS FROM/THROUGH ME HE WILL BE DONE WITH MENTORING UNDER ME." Learning this I rejected his offer to mentor him, because this is a typical parasite and NOT a protege. He wanted to be mentored for the wrong reason. Please do not get me wrong, was I miserly; not wanting to give of what I have? Absolutely not! But the real thing he should have desired (catching the spirit-the source and the force that produces the power for all he wanted) he had neglected. Please my dear friend and co-protege, to covet your mentor's kind of porsche car, tastefully furnished home, fat salary or income, lofty speaking platforms, circle of influence is to miss the whole essence of this destiny relationship, end up losing out and regretting! Your motive of being mentored must be right; it is to go beyond just learning from your mentor's experience, knowledge, wisdom or skill, but go for the spirit! This has been my unflinching goal and a daily one in my relationship with all my mentors. With all modesty I can talk of numerous instances of the positive dividends of this destiny wisdom. My genuine proteges are gleaning same from me and are also the better for it. If you desire same, it is time you got on the thirst line. Your thirst should be expressed in form of :
1. A passionate desire for your mentor's spirit
2. This passionate desire must be voiced in heartfelt prayers
NB- Please kindly note that preceding the steps mentioned in this edition required to catch the spirit of your mentor, by virtue of your relationship with your mentor before now, it is important to be reminded for readers who have been following the other series on this blog and to inform those who may have this edition as the first and perhaps the only series they have read, that you must have also been in the attitude of believing, honouring and serving your mentor. (This is discussed in an edutaining detail in a previous edition titled : "Relating With Your Million Dollar Mentor.") I urge new readers or visitors to this blog to kindly check up this edition.
Certain things I began experiencing years back in my personal and professional life indicated that I had caught and was operating in the spirit of my only mentor at the time. For instance, I started having intuitive strategic ideas on theatre productions just as my mentor do have. I noticed sometimes when he is not around if I was assigned to decide on the concept of a production, it will turn out that that was THE SAME way he would allude to that he had in mind whenever he comes around and receives feedback. At other times, if I go to represent him at an acting, speaking or Compeering engagement, in addition to other very encouraging commendations I receive, I hear things like: "you act...speak...or Compere just like he would have done if he was the one that came." With all sense of modesty, my mentor is phenomenal at his craft. So to be regarded as acting, speaking or Compeering like him is a compliment. At other times (while this mentor of mine and I DO NOT look alike physically) some mistake me for him physically. You know why some claim we look alike physically? While we do not look alike physically, we had become look alike SPIRITUALLY! I can go on and on with other instances. Now, I understand that this is not a common or popular school of thought, but like I said earlier, "that it is not popular does not mean it is not POTENT!" It is my hope that you will not despise this school of thought, rather you will embrace it like I did years ago and I have been the better for it till date.
Please note that catching the spirit is not enough, operating in it is what delivers the 'goods.' I did not stumble on those correlation of my strategic decisions and results that were in line with how my mentor would have done same by accident. Having been carrying out all the steps required to catch my mentor's spirit (as discussed earlier), anytime I needed to execute any professional task in line with the area of my career for which I was being mentored at the time,(acting, speaking, Compere) I always activate the spirit I am conscious I had caught (my mentor's) in prayers for wisdom and understanding for execution. I tell you the truth, it has always produced! It still does, because I have made what makes it work a lifestyle. After catching the spirit of your mentor therefore, you must begin to operate in it to access the treasures it delivers.
Behind every physical manifestation is a spiritual operation. Every visible operation is a product of an invisible operation. At the core of excellence in being groomed as a protege (who soon will become another authority personally and professionally to be modeled after) in mentorship programme is THE SPIRIT! What spirit? The spirit of your mentor.
Today, I enjoy some measure of fulfillment that may be referred to by others as success (through mentorship) due to my operating IN THE SPIRIT OF MY MENTORS!
Your greatest desire in mentorship relationship should be the catching and operating IN THE SPIRIT OF YOUR MENTOR.
