#mentoringblog

    While I don't get too personal with these writings and tend to focus on Mentoring the Masters, I feel it's safe to say that I don't play video games. Of course however if I am posting a TED-Talk by a video game player, the TED-Talk is certainly going to be one that's fascinating if not one related to leadership, mentoring, or legacy building. This talk in particular was beyond inspiring... for those who adopt the methods, it's life changing. Jane McGonical discusses how an encounter with a Traumatic Brain Injurty led her to develop an outlook on life that turned her day to day activities into a giant game inspired by the video games she loves as a way to heal herself. While there is much more to the talk, I'd like to highlight the fact that this woman healed herself by shaping the world around her.     As I write these entries and go back and look at previous ones, I will often tell you 'enjoy this brief video' before providing you a link, however this was a staggering (for a TED-Talk) 21 minutes, and it comes with an additional inspiring story about the filming of the talk well worth reading. I mention this, because I hope you'll make the time to enjoy this and give it your utmost attention. Find the video (when you have time to enjoy it) here:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jane-mcgonigal/watch-now-1up-your-life_b_3876195.html

    I set this next piece aside last week having already had 4 strong articles to share – I like keeping it to 2 entries when possible because one of my goals with the Mentoring The Masters blog & Newsletter is to give you enjoyable and useful information that won't take up too much of your time to digest (so please readers, feel free to let me know if I'm doing well with that job in the comments section). Still, it pained me to set it aside because it's a wonderful bit of work I've been excited to provide you with. Coming from the blog at Lead Change Group, the entry is titles “A Job or a Calling, You Decide”.

    The article is a powerful one. I sometimes worry that I summarize the articles I submit well enough that some of you tend to let the summaries I provide give you the 'gist', and decide to pass on reading the source material. This is one of those articles I really hope you'll take the time to read, so instead I'll offer just a brief insight I gained from it. One of the features of the Aspen Institute Ideas Festival videos I post which I enjoy sharing is when they ask all the Masters they interview “How do you define the Success - in the context of it being a 'Third Metric' specifically?”. This article at Lead Change Group meanwhile opens with the following statement:

“How do you view the work that you are currently doing? Do you see your work as a job or do you see it as a calling? Does your work provide you with satisfaction?”

    It is the final question – Does your work provide you with satisfaction? - which ties back to the Aspen Institute's third metric question. To all of you Masters who read this blog, I ask you that question: Does your work provide you satisfaction? Before you answer that question however, I'd like you to replace the phrase 'work' with 'day-to-day life'. So let me ask the rephrased question: Does your day-to-day life provide you with satisfaction? If your answer is yes, then congratulations! For those of you who are uncertain or certain that you are lacking this satisfaction, what can you do to change that? Remember that you are a Master so you are only restricted by your imagination and willpower. Through my work at Mentoring the Masters I have helped many of you reach this point of satisfaction, if not taken you beyond the point of satisfied to overfilled with joy.

    Brief Disclaimer: This is the 16th entry in the Mentoring the Masters Blog and Newsletter, the first time I've directly 'advertized' our services in the entries, and it will not be a common occurrence. I produce these entries as a free and public service for both those I mentor and those of you I've never met. I like to think that by providing these entries, I provide world shapers, legacy developers, and Masters in general with inspiration to vastly improve the world we live in. I don't usually 'advertise' Mentoring the Masters directly through the blog or newsletter, however this particular article has made it pertinent I mention my organization.

    So, if you haven't spoken with me directly yet, consider visiting Mentoring the Masters' website at http://mentoringthemasters.com . There you will find a bit more about Mentoring the Masters, the work I conduct through the organization, and a few of the service options. I provide an initial consultation for free where you can ask any questions about our services you like and get a clear picture of how my mentoring can help you – that may be helping you become satisfied with your day-to-day life or it might be taking an already day-to-day satisfied Master and helping them determine what the next step in their Legacy will be. Meanwhile, the article which inspired this brief advertisement which I hope you'll all take the time to read can be found at the Lead Change Group blog here: http://leadchangegroup.com/a-job-or-a-calling-you-decide/

    This week we open with an entry from The Glass Hammer by Nneke Orji of London. Titled 'Mentor Me: The Value of Male and Female Mentors', I must say I was excited to see an article to share from the blog that was gender-balanced from the get-go. I enjoy the work The Glass Hammer puts out, but I sometimes find it difficult to share some of their posts – the goal of the Mentoring The Masters blog is to reach all of you, so I work to provide articles that will appeal to all of my audience: Boomers, Traditionals, Millenials, Males, Females, and Masters at all stages of their lives be it those just starting their careers or those of you who've already achieved many great successes and ready for your next great challenge. The Glass Hammer is focused on Female Masters but as many of you have already seen, they do a decent job of balancing entries with a female focus and entries that have value for everyone. This is one of those 'for everyone' entries. This particular article starts by stating over 19% of women have never had a mentor according to a LinkedIn survey. Then, it speaks to the power of mentors – the point which I believe effects all of you readers I described above. While the article does speak to a female audience, I believe all of you will find great value by looking past the language intended for an engendered audience and deriving your own lessons.

    So what is my insight to you? The article speaks to the power of female and male mentors. I agree with many of its points, but in this day and age a skilled mentor is one who incorporates all forms of thinking and thought processes with their mentoring. As I've stated in several previous entries, a mentor is not an instructor, tutor, or consultant. No – a true mentor is a skilled guide. Effective mentors guide those they mentor through listening and framing the issues at hand into new perspectives so that the mentee has an opportunity to reach their own conclusions. This ability to reframe issues comes from skilled listening and an ability to dramatically shift perspectives – this included engendered thinking. I have had my own mentors and they have all had this ability. Consider this factor as you read this wonderful entry, which can be found here: http://www.theglasshammer.com/news/2013/08/30/mentor-me-the-value-of-male-and-female-mentors/

     Next, we have another book summary from the monetized blog I enjoy – Leadership Now's 'Leading Blog'. The book they feature this week is Leadership Transformed by Dr. Peter Fuda. Their summary of the work features 7 metaphors for leadership transformation. My favorite was the 7th metaphor, Russian Dolls. To be fair, the reason I found this metaphor to be my favorite is due to it's equal application as a metaphor for the experience the Masters I mentor receive through Mentoring the Masters. As the book summary's author Michael McKinney explains it:

“Russian Dolls – a complimentary set of journeys that interact with a leaders personal journey of transformation”

    Be sure to read all 7 metaphors, and consider picking up the book. You can accomplish both by going to the book summary at Leadership Now's posting here: http://www.leadershipnow.com/leadingblog/2013/08/7_metaphors_for_leadership_tra.html

     Finally this week is a piece from Huffington Post that is not a TED-Talk or Aspen Institute interview (shocking, I know)! Joel Davis submitted a piece titled “How To Experience True Quiet (And Why You'll Want To)'. The piece is a guide to mantra meditation. I know the power of Mantra Meditation and when its appropriate for a client, I may recommend it. Still, I understand it is not for everyone. As Masters however, I am confident that all of you – whether interested in Mantra Meditation or not – are at least willing to learn a bit more about it before deciding if it is for you or not. To that end I hope you will take the 5 minutes it takes to read the article and give it some thought. For many of you, meditation of any kind – be it using a mantra or some other method - will help when you 'hit a creative wall' or have difficulty making a decision that will affect your legacies. Find the article and an opportunity to reflect on mantra meditation as possible solution by navigating here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/25/mantra-meditation_n_3796331.html?utm_hp_ref=gps-for-the-soul&ir=GPS%20for%20the%20Soul

    Sometimes I feel like I should let the title of an article I'm recommending do all the speaking. This is one of those times, yet if I didn't offer some insight I don't know that I'd be providing you with the bits of one-way mentoring I'm hoping to achieve by maintaining this blog (or newsletter, depending how you're reading this). The article is titled “How a 10-Year-Old Blogger is Changing the World”. See? I really don't have to tell you anything else for you to want to go read the piece. Still, here's my insight:

    The article focuses on one particular aspect of the young blogger's performance which contributes greatly to her success, when it quotes her saying “I prefer interviewing other people because I can learn from them”. As they say “Out of the mouths of babes”... Listening produces learning through observation, and knowledge from observation produces success. In fact, processing the knowledge one gains from observation is a form of listening itself! The point is, listening to one's self is a skill which should be mastered by you Boomers out there, while you Millennial readers should continue to develop your abilities to listen through observation to the situations you find yourselves in. Insight aside, the article itself is wonderfully inspiring, and can be found here:

http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/craig-and-marc-kielburger/hannah-alper-blog_b_3779665.html

    Have you heard about organizations placing free Pianos around cities? These two women have taken real-world viral concepts like that, and turn them into social good.  Sing For Hope is a nonprofit that aims to be the PeaceCorps of the arts. Considering that successful artists require a deep and knowing connection to their hearts, the two women who founded the organization are unsurprisingly excellent at speaking about the ways in which people should connect to their passions. Art allows others to reconnect with themselves. In fact, incorporating the arts into the work I do with the Masters I mentor has often proven to be a powerful tool for those just at the beginning of their paths to developing their legacies. Oh, and those pianos I mentioned?  The women behind Sing For Hope didn't create the idea, but they certainly improved upon it.  After a set time in public, the pianos are then donated to various charities to make music accessible to children who might not otherwise have an opportunity to find a piano and learn to play!  Enjoy this brief interview from the Aspen Institute's Ideas Festival by viewing it here: http://on.aol.com/partner/hp-live-segments-517394847/videoId=517836136

    This last entry is a bit more of a personal glance into my life than I've offered so far. I enjoy watching dolphins on the rare occasion that they make their way towards the beach by my home in Long Beach when I can see them from my balcony. In fact, I often find myself meditating on their natural flows and the intention and focus they have while also espousing what we perceive as joy. To that end, I thought this TED speech – while not at all related to leadership, mentoring, or legacy development (though the scientist speaking – if she achieves her goals – will certainly leave behind a legacy), I found it a wonderful and inspiring speech, well worth viewing. If anything, I certainly found myself inspired to wander down to the beach myself. As I do some of my best thinking there, I thought there was enough relevance that I could share this as my third entry for the week. I hope you all enjoy it and find your own inspiration from it somehow. I could have dug up another Leadership or Legacy video from TED this week for you, but when this came up in my que, it simply felt right to share it all with you. Call it an exercise in genuineness. Enjoy the TED-Talk for yourself by going here:

    I often get asked what the difference is between Mentoring, Consulting, Tutoring, Advising, and Teaching, and I have a few peppy (yet substantive) answers to provide. Now, I wonder if when this question comes by email if I shouldn't simply redirect those asking the question to this wonderful 'quick guide to mentoring'. To be fair, mentoring is a difficult and deeply involved process, but the writing by Mary C Schaefer over at Lead Change Group in her entry 'Instead of giving advice, try this' does seem to cover some key mentoring tactics and paradigms of thought we adapt as we work to guide those we mentor. Get a look inside what we do at Mentoring the Masters and how we do it by reading the entry here:

http://leadchangegroup.com/instead-of-giving-advice-try-this/

    I try to be mindful when writing these newsletter updates. Though I was a successful private business consultant in the past, Mentoring the Masters is not some company that mentors people as they build a business. Rather, if that is what someone I am mentoring envisions their legacy to be, I certainly use all my tools to mentor them along that path. My point is, I don't wish to have it appear that everything is about starting a business or a nonprofit – in fact, I may lean a bit heavily on the example where 'a former CEO wants to travel the world and paint but can't get over a feeling that the idea is foolish'. I mention all this, because this next entry has a lot of 'Top Performing CEO / Effective Employees' language. Having said that, there are some deep insights for use in Legacy development here worth considering. The article is titled “At Work, Giving is the New Getting” and while it discusses profits, it's really about the many levels of success which are attained when charity, generosity, and altruism are applied to collaborators. Note that I didn't say 'at the office' or 'coworkers'. When you see those phrases in the article, try to replace them with more situation-neutral ones. Perhaps then you will get the significant value I did from the piece, which is available in it's entirety here:

http://www.theglasshammer.com/news/2013/08/16/at-work-giving-is-the-new-getting/

     Finally in our 'official posts', around June 15 I posted an Aspen Institute Ideas Festival 2-way interview between Arriana Huffington and Walter Isaacson discussing The Franklin project and a national 'Service Corps'. Now I'd like you to consider another interview of someone with a similar project. Steven Colbertson is the CEO of Youth Service America, and he is building a legacy of developing world changers by asking them to take on a year of service. Also covered is how Mr. Colbertson defines success – a theme in many of the interviews conducted during the Aspen Institute Ideas Festival. Hear more about this inspiring work by watching the brief interview here:

http://on.aol.com/partner/hp-live-segments-517394847/videoId=517834691

    For an 'unofficial' fourth link of the week, I'd like to provide and interview between Phil Jackson who wrote the book on leadership and coaching '11 Rings'. Seeing as how I recommended an article discussing the book, I thought it couldn't hurt to provide the interview. I might not have caught all the sports references, but the leadership discussion was impressive. Enjoy the interview if you haven't yet seen it by going here (but beware – since it's online and direct from the Daily Show, Jon Stewart briefly uses some foul language):

    The first item this week is one I'd mentioned in my last entry covering another Forbes article. This one details 16 start-ups which were selected by an organization called 'Dream It Ventures'. Where Margret Spellings' program (mentioned in the July 21-27th Mentoring the Masters blog and Newsletter entry) develops entrepreneurs into masters, Dream It Ventures gives a 'summer intensive' to 16 organizations which grants each organization resources to help them rapidly develop success. Dream It's summer intensive are similar to the Mentoring the Masters intensives – My mentoring is provided to my masterful clients, giving them the tools they need to quickly accelerate the development of their projects which will develop into legacies. On a less advertising-sounding note, the companies themselves are doing some fascinating things – more inspiration to help you as you determine what you will do to shape your legacy. Read the list and see some of the legacies that were rapidly developing this summer:

http://www.forbes.com/sites/karstenstrauss/2013/05/10/dreamits-super-startups-2013/

    While I am highlighting what younger generations of leaders generations are doing, I thought this next article would be a nice inclusion. Once again I'd like to share a piece from the female leadership blog The Glass Hammer. This week editor-in-chief Michelle Hendelman wrote a piece on corporate change being driven by female leaders from Generation Y. On occasion, I will still have speaking engagements where I'm asked to speak about Managing Millennials, and the various challenges that come from people of different generations learning to work with one another. She discusses a common key issue, in that Boomers & Traditionals agree that Millenials are ill prepared for professional challenges. She then goes on to clarify that despite the expectations placed on them, Millennials are proving to be not only resilient but also resourceful in their ability to manipulate the environments around them to facilitate success. What I find interesting is the fact that their success seems – in some part – relative to the level of connectivity they've grown up with. The connectivity of the Millennial generation and the gap between Millennials and Boomers is certainly food for thought, though I wonder if there isn't a legacy project in there somewhere. Perhaps you'll create something after reading the brief article here:

http://www.theglasshammer.com/news/2013/08/06/will-gen-y-women-in-the-workplace-be-the-drivers-of-corporate-change/

    While we're on the topics of millennial, I have found one more inspiring list to share with you. From INC.com comes a list of 2013's 'coolest college start ups'. I don't know that any of these start-ups are evidence of Masters ready for the type of mentoring I have to offer just yet. That said, I do believe more than a few of these companies are being run by people who have already found great success on a level well beyond power and fortune. As you go through the list, don't just read what these people's companies are doing – Look at their smiles and their eyes. That's the look all of you should have when you're doing whatever it is you've chosen to do during this portion of your lives. Discover the legacies being built and see the dreamers behind them here:

    I'm starting this week with a rare TED-related item from Huffington Post, rare for the fact that it's a response to a featured video, and not the video itself which I'm highlighting. The piece however is captivating, inspiring, and generally powerful so I am happy to share it. She discusses the various ways which she sees brain magic occuring in other people, and it usually is the way their passions maniferst into their work or creations – be it her software engineer husband or her child holding a stuffed animal recreation of the Titanic sinking. This little item (which is in response to the quite entertaining video included at the end of the editorial) is a wonderful reminder that yes – our legacy work can stem from the raw elements of those pursuits and passions which bring us the most joy. There really is not much more to add as the author's piece – Holly Robinson – has done a wonderful job of saying the rest. Read her editorial and see the video which inspired it here:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/holly-robinson/keith-barry-brain-magic_b_3728114.html

    My next item for you comes from Forbes and is titled “10 greatest Industry-Disrupting Startups of 2012”. I encountered this list while reading an article I've put off featuring until next week, because I'm hoping the '2013' edition of this list comes out soon. The companies on 2012's list features many of the same traits I've pointed out as being indicators of mastery and success in my previous entries – these are organizations which are developing legacies by shaping the way the world works. Kickstarter for example has brought venture capitalism to close-to-the-heart passion projects and inspires the poorest of advocates to donate what they can to launch a project they believe in. The whole list is inspiring, but the one which I thought best summarized these points I've been making over the last few weeks was Noodle.

    Noodle is a search engine and network for everything related to education resources from preschool through to graduate school. The network provides a resource with which one can easily locate tutors, home school improvement programs, financial resources, online copies of textbooks, and more. Wealthy or poor, easy access to education resources is now available for all. Once again, you have an example of passion driven success growing from an organization that is making it easier for people to connect with one another. Now, I am clearly a proponent of using this trend as inspiration for the legacy projects some of my clients will develop, but what is next? My question to you is, if connecting people is the current paradigm of success, what will the next one be? Even if you don't come up with an answer, I'm certain you'll find some inspiration as you think about the question. Look for me to post 2013's list when it becomes available, and in the meantime see the list in its entirety here:

http://www.forbes.com/sites/ilyapozin/2012/07/19/10-greatest-industry-disrupting-startups-of-2012/

    Finally this week I present an article which really gets to the heart (no pun intended) of the work I do through Mentoring the Masters. As I've explained before, many clients (though not all) have some kind of blockage when they first come to me. A significant enough portion of these blockages seem to come from an inability to access the excitement of being a young entrepreneur many of them had years before they become the Masters they are today. They've worked themselves away from their own sense of freedom, even if their freedom is firmly in their grasps. For that reason, I find more and more of the articles I've been posting feature Millenial dreamers and future Masters. This article - written by Deborah Mills-Scofield – was featured on the Lead Change Group blog. It explains how young millennial leaders inspire and instill hope in her. I'd like all of you readers – boomers and millenials – to read it and reflect on the thoughts she's had to offer. I found them to be valuable, and I am confident you will too. The article can be found here:

    For those of you I mentor and others whom have met me I am certain this week's first item might initially seem like a very unusual selection, yet its ties to Mentoring the Masters is unquestionable. I present to you another start-up company with a specific item which I think may change the world – The Omni. If you cannot find inspiration from this creation, I suggest calling me immediately for a consultation to see what is blocking you from dreaming!

     At first glance, The Omni seems like nothing more than a fancy video-game device working to turn the 1990's visions of virtual reality into, well... reality. Before going any further, I suggest you examine the explanation of the product here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qGFuedKS9Mg

     While it may seem like just a big toy, the company - Virtuix - is clearly run by masters. These are people who have dreams, bring them to life, and change the lives of many others in the process. Beginning with a $125,000 goal, the organization raised over $1.1 Million in 48 days for a product that was not even in production yet. While the video and the kickstarter page I'll link you to feature only the video game prospects for use, the reality is so much more. People can program dreams – truly shaping and crafting worlds – then have users tour their dreams. Imagine Israelis and Pakistanis using this device to better understand one another by touring the neighborhoods of each others' countries without fear of violence or the hassle of crossing borders through a highly realistic experience. The possibilities are endless... and so are the chances to find inspiration from this company, their product, and their success. Read more about Virtuix and The Omni at their Kickstarter page:

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1944625487/omni-move-naturally-in-your-favorite-game?ref=discover_pop

     Next this week is some insight into a wonderful new book that tackles an often neglected topic in leadership – the intergration of business with belief. Simply titled 'The Business of Belief', the book is summarized at the 'monetized blog' Leadership Now, with a few key points offered. The instant I knew I'd be linking to this book review and summary was when I read this quote from the book's author:

“Those skilled at motivating people to cross a new bridge to change their beliefs and behavior, are not trying to cajole or manipulate them against their will. Rather, they seek to guide them to a new destination, a transformed way of feeling, thinking and acting that's aligned with their personal desires and values”

     Clearly, this summarizes not only effective leadership... it also describes skilled mentoring. It would be fair to say that mentoring and leadership may often go hand in hand, though not always. There is a clear blurring of the lines, though that discussion is perhaps for another time (during a slow news week for the topics of mentoring, leadership, and legacy development perhaps). Overall, the brief summary of the book is fantastic, and I may just pick a copy up for myself! Either way, take a few moments to appreciate the context of the work that have been summarized for your easy consumption. Read more:

http://www.leadershipnow.com/leadingblog/2013/07/the_business_of_belief.html

     Finally, a truly exciting endeavor was discussed by Margaret Spellings at the Aspen Institute Ideas Festival. Masters are working to build a community by creating infrastructure that will encourage the development of entrepreneurs into masters! This is certainly the type of work that can be defined as a legacy project! Additionally for your consumption, after the first five minutes a wonderful discussion on the definition and redefinition of success is presented. Usually I like to offer a summary, however I hope by holding back this week I'll encourage the more hesitant of you to click and experience the wonderful insights first-hand for yourselves! The interview may be viewed by clicking here:

    I don't know if the sentiment “Everyone wants to make a difference” is as true as we'd all like it to be, however the statement certainly describes each of my clients. This week's post from the Lead Change Group blog speaks more to the leadership of teams, yet I've found that many of the piece's points are easily adapted to introspective thoughts I present to my clients for them to meditate on. For example, the article's author Tal Shnall writes:

“Leaders have to invest in the development of the people they lead”

     I am likely to take a sentiment like this and suggest my client consider this from the aspect of the legacy project they are working on (I say 'legacy project' using the work 'project' only due to the lack of a better descriptor. There is a wide collective variety of intents and goals among those I mentor). As a legacy 'project' is developed, we work together to determine who will the legacy inspire and how will it inspire. You see, that work of inspiration is a form of leadership and this type of interpretation is what I ask them to meditate on. I hope you will take time this week to read the full article and meditate on it in a similar way for yourself. Tal Shnall's piece “Everyone wants to make a difference” is located here:

http://leadchangegroup.com/everyone-wants-to-make-a-difference/

     In a few of my recent writings, I've mentioned how it is becoming much more common for legacies and leadership to sprout from work that contributes to the growing global-interconnectedness. Recently, someone sent me a list of the 'Most innovative companies of 2012', suggesting the people I mentor may find inspiration for how they wish to develop their legacies from the work of these companies. I on occasion find myself reminding people that many of the legacies being developed through work at Mentoring the Masters will not be organizations or companies, so I has my reservations when I first navigated my way to the list. What I found was a dynamic pool of inspiration that I am happy to share not only with my clients, but with all of you as well. Many of the organization – especially those at the top of the list – are somehow deeply and intricately helping to further connect our world. While I'll skip mentioning the obvious ones, I found the inclusion of Square inspiring for its ability to allow artisan retailers the ability to sell their wares globally and easily. Another organization worth mentioning is Air BnB - a phenomenal way which cultural exchange occurs while allowing people to find financial supplements to their income. There are many more on the list of 50, so I hope you will find yourself inspired with ideas when you examine the list for yourself.

http://www.fastcompany.com/most-innovative-companies/2012/full-list

    Finally, I'd like to present you with another wonderful video from the Aspen Institute's Ideas Festival. This week I am highlighting an interview with Hibaaq Osman – founder of Karama. The interview starts off discussing geopolitics, but really starts to get to the topics I like to cover here at around the 7 minute mark. The first relevant item which comes up is Osman's views on male versus female leadership. She points to the historical differences that tend to occur between male and female leadership. While there is certainly truth to what she says, I feel it pertinent to point out that masters – including those I mentor – transcend this stereotype more often than not. In fact, it is there mastery of balancing their leadership styles and approaches which allows them to succeed exponentially more than other successful leaders. If you feel you lean more towards a gender-traditional leadership style though, fear not! This is the perfect opportunity for you to reflect on how being aware of that tendency can allow you to improve as you develop your mastery of leadership and success.

     The other portion I'd like to mention begins shortly after Hibaaq's comments on gender and leadership, in which she discusses her definition of success. To summarize, she explains that true success is not money or power - it is how you respect others, how you influence those others through respecting and identifying with them, and your level of influence in communities which stems from who you are, not what you have. Political and financial positive gains all eventually flow from true success, but you must 'walk amongst the people' before you will ever have a complete sense of 'success'. They are inspiring observations I am happy to share, so I hope you will listen to them for yourself by viewing the interview which is available here: