My goals were to: To be a more effective listener Opinionated More Open Minded Open up more to the class Not just for the sake of being heard Have something to contribute Listen, share and asking for feedback (Meta perception) To achieve open mindedness, contribute relevant feedback and get feedback for better understanding and evaluation. The third part as you notice is to ask for feedback Which I will ask you to do at the end to see how I have done in accomplishing my goal.

My challenge was to pass on something from leadership to all of you as part of this project To complete the cycle of my wanting to become a more effective listener Therefor being able to open up more about my relevant life experiences that might be helpful to others To ultimately put that into play by the end of this course. But more importantly to help carry it forward through all of you. So here it is. I toyed with a number of ideas to talk about and looked back as to what I feel have been some of the most important contributions to me being who I am today.

So as I listed them a number of events and people came to mind. My grandparents who… Certainly my parents were among the top of the list too… There are teachers and trainers on the list… and I keep adding to that one. There have been people I have worked for on that list that have taught me things about the business world I could never get in a classroom.

What list am I talking about? It’s a very elite list So important to the success of your future that if you don’t have one Your future as a leader may be in jeopardy. They all are part of a list that if you don’t have now I hope you’ll seriously think about by the time I’m done.

The list that I’m talking about is a list of people that have been mentors to me. People that have helped me set a foundation for my morals, ethics and values and provided me with the guidance and counseling in times of need or indecision. The word MENTOR as defined by Webster’s is “a trusted counselor or guide.” Notice it says TRUSTED counselor or guide.

Mentoring can be a very important part of our learning process. Unfortunately for some, they go throughout their lifetime missing those opportunities. There are many reasons for those missed opportunities But if we make ourselves aware of the many benefits of being mentored More importantly paying it forward and being a mentor fun and rewarding Those opportunities multiply themselves many times over.

My challenge to you today Is to identify the people that are positive mentors in your life and seek them out. Notice I said MENTORS. You can and should have many throughout your lifetime. You will encounter many mentors with expertise in many areas. Suck their brains dry till there is no more and watch them ask “What else can I help you with?” True mentors can be the difference in your life when the going gets tough.

My second challenge to you is to become a mentor to others. There is no gift more special than the one you give away. Be generous and be a guiding light to someone that needs a path but can’t see the way.

Thirdly teach them how to mentor others. Then and only then can we multiply the wisdom and leadership of many into great things. I believe that this class will achieve great things. Always seek mentors along the way and always remember to be one too.