Since I was a junior in high school, I have been a mentor to many different people. When I was in high school, I mentored middle school girls for two years with one of my best friends. This year I started to mentor thirty-seven freshmen in the Honors program. I have always been the person who has their life “together,” and because of this quality, I was asked by the program director to take on the freshmen class and make sure they do alright in their first year at Gonzaga.
After spending so much time with each one of these students helping them figure out their schedules and four year plans, I have learned not only about how I could have done my first year at GU differently, but also how being a mentor has taught me how to be a better leader and friend to people in my own class.
I am the oldest of five children, and the oldest of ten grandchildren, so my whole life I’ve been “the leader,” and thus the one in charge. Being a mentor has taught me to be more sympathetic to other people and what they’re going through. Not everyone has the same life story or the same upbringing, and when you mentor someone, you have to recognize that. I can’t approach someone who had a completely different life before coming to Gonzaga than I did with the idea that they will have any of the same goals that I have.
Another thing being a mentor has taught me is how much you have to listen to others in order to get to know them on a deep level, enough so they will trust you and eventually open up to you. If you don’t truly hear them out, then it will be harder for them to feel comfortable when something really bad happens or they really need you.
Finally, being a mentor has showed me how much I need other mentors in my life. No one can do life by themselves and figure it all out all on their own, and I always need advice and guidance. The more I pour into other people, the more I need to be poured into by others. I have realized even more how fragile life can be without others there to support us.
If you don’t have a mentor, I would highly recommend getting in touch or asking a person a year older than you to mentor you or at least be a mentor-like person in your life. I have learned so much as a mentor, but even more as a mentee. Give it a try. I promise you won’t regret it.