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In 2019, Mark Cuban was interviewed on stage at an Inc. magazine conference:
Interviewer: Are there people in your life you consider mentors? Mark: No. I have never thought, “I’m going to call this guy and see what he thinks.” Interviewer: Why? Mark: Because at some point, I’m going to need to be responsible for whatever that knowledge is. Interviewer: If you haven’t had mentors or people you leaned on or who advised you, you must have people you admire. Mark: Sure, the best advice I ever got was from Larry in one of my first jobs. Because I’m always go-go-go, Larry said, “Mark, when we sit in a meeting, take out your pad of paper and pen. In the upper right-hand corner, write the word: listen.” To this day, that’s what I’ll do. I write “listen” to remind me to shut up and hear what others have to say. But that’s as close as I’ve come because figuring it out creates a platform for me to go forward. While Mark is scrappy and entrepreneurial, he is surprisingly puzzled about mentoring. Evidently, Mark believes a mentor figures things out for you, solves your problems, and tells you what to do. But that’s not mentoring. That’s consulting. Mentors:
However, Mentees are ultimately responsible for acting on whatever knowledge, insights, ideas, or advice Mentors contribute. When Larry offered listening advice, Mark was responsible for acting on it. Mark experimented with the suggestion and improved his engagement skills. Let’s assume that Mark has continued to listen and engage in meetings earnestly. Inevitably, he has heard valuable perspectives, insights, and ideas that have advanced his learning. And let’s surmise that Mark has shifted his actions or implemented some ideas based on what others have contributed. That’s mentoring! (The irony? Mark was mentoring thousands of conference attendees during that interview, in which he questioned the value of mentoring.) Mentors don’t figure, fix, or find a solution. They contribute insights and ideas so Mentees can move forward faster or favorably… even when Mentees don’t recognize the contribution. © 2023. Ann Tardy and MentorLead. www.mentorlead.com. All Rights Reserved. |