Raw 101 - The Right Mentor and Your Success
When we have a hard time reaching our objectives, something really helpful is a mentor, a guide or guru. The idea of a mentor exists in many professional fields. It applies very successfully to raw and living foods.
According to a dictionary, a mentor is an experienced guide, a wise counsellor. In the present article, a mentor is any person from which you can learn something, who's experience, knowledge and competence will help you along your journey. It can be a colleague, a neighbour, or someone of who's existence you were made aware of on a forum, in a book, a film or from word-of-mouth. That person can be alive, or have lived a long time ago. He (or she) must absolutely inspire you. That is the whole point. The motivational power of this being is what makes him (or her) a good mentor.
Having a good mentor is a powerful advantage that you must not neglect. The right mentor for you, will be the one that inspires you, that shows you the road ahead, that is the incarnation of the goal you are striving for. He will motivate you, will show you, being himself an example, that you as well are able to succeed.
Usually, a mentor will guide you in one particular domain. Rare are the mentors that are inspirational models in every domain! Chose a different one for sports, another for your career, yet another for your spirituality and another for your living food journey. Any aspect of your life that feels like it needs extra support, it would be appropriate to chose a mentor (also called a coach). The total number of coaches is not really as important as the inspirational value they have in your life. Know that your choice of mentors will change as you evolve. Find someone that inspires you know.
Of course, in this article, we are talking about chosing a raw and living food mentor. You can even chose more than one: one for the kitchen. There is certainly one raw chef out there who's creations make your mouth water, who's simple yet tasty recipes and artistic presentation impress you. Or, maybe you prefer quick and nutritious meals. Raw ethnic foods is your thing? These could all be good mentors in their own little area of expertise that will serve you in the here and now. While you can have several mentors concurrently, it is better to stick to one at a time, learn all you can from that one, then feel free to move on to the next one, confident you have gained all the knowledge you had to. That way, you will benefit to the full extent from that mentor's experience. You will have a much better coherence in the information you are gathering if you do it that way. Your mentor can very well be a raw friend or some well-known author, it doesn't matter much. This person must imperatively motivate you to surpass yourself, that is important.
You will appreciate having a mentor in the health aspect of living foods. Have you seen someone that just radiates health and well being? The mere sight of a certain person motivates you to eat better? Then, learn all you can about that person. What does he do that is different from everyone else? What are his tricks to succeed? What types of beliefs does that person live by? Dig as deep as your curiosity pushes you (without becoming a pest, of course!). You will learn invaluable life lessons. Treasures of knowledge await...
Did you think of somebody that would make you more physically active? While a lot of people are less than motivated by sports, you still require a minimum of exercise, independantly of the eating regimen. In fact exercise will procure you better health - it's a well-known fact! So think of partnering up with someone, or get a personal trainer, anyone that will instill the desire to move that body!!! Now go and move it!
Reading the present article, you surely thought of some inspirational people. You see these people as having traveled more than you have along a given path. You see them as models of something you would like to achieve yourself. You would like to imitate their journey. You can think of several motivational reasons to follow their example. What next?
Several options are available. Some will gather all the information they can find on that mentor in that particular domain. Books, newspaper clippings, internet links: all kinds of information susceptible to offer an inspirational model. Put all your findings in an easily accessible place. The articles, books and other reading materials, on a bookshelf or in a folder somewhere handy. For pictures, you can put them in visible spots in the house: on a wall or on the fridge. A little picture frame on the desk is always elegant and will certainly stir up some conversation. Why not a nice inspirational screensaver or desktop wallpaper? The idea is to have something visual to inspire you throughout the day.
You can easily create a collage of all those images that we call a vision board. The idea is simple: find all the images you can that illustrate what you are striving to achieve. Radiant health? Chose pictures of smiling active people. A healthy weight? Chose pictures of people that are happy with their apparence (no starving supermodel with a grey pout!) Do not underestimate the power of such endeavours. Do we not say that a picture is worth a thousand words? You may also include some inspirational words on your vision board. Like Health, or Energy in big beautiful letters. Why undertake such a project? It forces a certain amount of thought. You pick a person, you cut it out, paste it on your vision board. But why did you pick that person? What is so special about this one? What quality do you admire? How did that person get that quality? How long has he been that way? What does he eat? In looking for these answers, you will discover untold treasures, not evident at first glance.
What purpose will all those articles and collected books serve, and that vision board, if you decided to do one? Their usefulness is endless: visual inspiration and support; encouragement on an off-day; a reminder that others have succeeded and that, therefore, you can too; motivation to surpass yourself, to give 110%; quick answers when in doubt or you encounter hesitation.
In personal development circles, it is often said: you become like those you spend the most time with. You don't have to be physically with a person to spend time with him. Books, television programs, forums are just as many ways to "spend time" with someone. So, who are you spending your time with?
