Mentoring is reciprocal

A prominent Philadelphia retailer once told me the surest way to be mentored by her was never to ask. The people she ended up investing in were the ones who simply kept showing up (volunteering, staying curious, doing the work) until one day she looked up and thought, I want to help this person grow. That insight has stayed with me. It reframes mentoring entirely: from a transaction you initiate to a relationship that is earned, from the perspective of the mentor and the mentee. I recently…