Mentor Value & Why

The Value of Being a Mentor and Why

YMI can serve students by inviting caring adults from the community to connect with students and be a listening ear, someone who will not judge them, and help them see their full potential as they continue to receive their education.

Be the Consistent Relationship

YMI mentors feel as though they are making a difference in the lives of youth in our community by showing a consistent relationship. A relationship that over time gains trust and encouragement where they may otherwise be none.

The origins of mentoring can be traced back to ancient Greek mythology. When Odysseus went to fight in the Trojan War, he put his trusted friend, Mentor, in charge of his son, Telemachus. Ever since, the term ‘mentor’ has generally come to define someone with more experience, imparting their wisdom and values on someone with less experience.

Being a mentor bridges the generation gap. Generally speaking, most mentor/mentoree relationships happen between someone in an older generation, coaching someone in a younger generation. If you’re mentoring someone younger than you, realize that it can be a productive experience for both sides, as each generation can come to understand the other’s motivations, career goals, and attitudes. Soon, it won’t feel like there’s any gap at all. Causes you to become more compassionate and have a better perspective. We spend so much mental energy thinking about ourselves — our hopes, our fears, our anxieties, & our goals for the future. Having a mentee — who indeed has his or her own hopes and fears and plans — forces us to occasionally stop thinking about ourselves and think about others more than ourselves, on a consistent basis. By focusing our energies on helping someone else, we provide a valuable service both to our mentee and to ourselves. You are helping build a better, more stable society. One-to-one mentoring actually helps create happier, more stable adults, which helps society at large.

For instance, studies show:

%

of kids mentored are more likely to enroll in college

%

of kids are more likely to volunteer regularly

%

of kids are interested in becoming a mentor

%

of kids are more likely to hold leadership positions

In Conclusion
Ultimately, the success of your mentee is up to them; as a mentor you can only provide so much guidance, but the effect you can have on that person’s life is priceless. We have something to learn from everyone, and we also have something to teach everyone. Treat your position with respect, and there’s no doubting that both the mentor and the mentee will benefit from the relationship for years to come.