LIVERYMAN ROBERT MCCLEMENTS, PRINCIPAL, GRANGE CONSULTS - WINNER OF THE CPI'S GOLD MEDAL 2025

This essay explores my personal experience of mentorship. Having experienced both sides of the relationship – first as a mentee and later as a mentor – I’ve come to appreciate mentorship not merely as a tool, but as a lifelong practice.

Mentorship is not a one-size-fits-all formula. It evolves with time, context, and connection. What follows is an examination of how I believe this evolution unfolds – how the wisdom of one generation, one leader, or one friend can shape the career of another. And perhaps most importantly, how we should be both a student and a teacher.

The Essence of Mentorship

At its heart, mentorship is a living relationship where one person offers time, experience, and encouragement to help another grow. It is not the same as coaching, which often focuses on performance, or advising, which may be transactional. Mentorship is more human than that. It is based on trust, respect, and a willingness on both sides to learn and adapt.

This essay explores my personal experience of mentorship. Having experienced both sides of the relationship – first as a mentee and later as a mentor – I’ve come to appreciate mentorship not merely as a tool, but as a lifelong practice.

 

Mentorship is not a one-size-fits-all formula. It evolves with time, context, and connection. What follows is an examination of how I believe this evolution unfolds – how the wisdom of one generation, one leader, or one friend can shape the career of another. And perhaps most importantly, how we should be both a student and a teacher.

 

The Essence of Mentorship

At its heart, mentorship is a living relationship where one person offers time, experience, and encouragement to help another grow. It is not the same as coaching, which often focuses on performance, or advising, which may be transactional. Mentorship is more human than that. It is based on trust, respect, and a willingness on both sides to learn and adapt.

 

In my experience, mentorship appears in many guises. Sometimes it is formal, part of a company or a university programme. Sometimes it happens informally, almost by accident, when two people find common ground. And sometimes it is part of a structured effort in the community. However it begins, the aim is usually the same: to bridge the gap between potential and achievement, and to give the benefit of lived experience to someone who is still finding their way.

 

It’s not just apocryphal – research backs this up. A meta-analysis of more than a hundred studies (Underhill, 2007) found that mentorship has positive effects on everything from job performance and satisfaction to confidence and wellbeing. In short, it makes a measurable difference to both careers and people.

 

The same is true here in the UK. The EDUCATE programme – a research-based accelerator tied to a university – showed how trust and goal setting are central to good relationships (UCL, 2021). A study of public sector leaders identified clear signs of effective mentoring on both sides, offering a framework that others can use.

 

I have worked with the King’s Trust (formerly the Prince’s Trust) for many years and have seen first-hand how it offers one of the most robust real-world examples. The King’s Trust has supported more than a million young people since 1976, with three-quarters of them moving on into work, training, or education. In 2022–23 alone, 67,000 young people took part, and nine out of ten reported stronger skills in communication, teamwork, and confidence

(King’s Trust, 2023). Its Enterprise Programme has helped over 86,000 entrepreneurs start businesses with the support of long-term mentors.

 

Examples like these show that mentorship is not a soft option or an optional extra. It is a practice with real impact – one that can change careers, open doors, and shape lives.

 

The Origin of the Word ‘Mentor’

The word mentor comes from Homer’s Odyssey, where Mentor (Figure 2) was a trusted friend of Odysseus. When Odysseus left for war, he asked Mentor to guide his son, Telemachus. Later, the goddess Athena – symbol of wisdom – appears in Mentor’s form to support the boy’s growth.

 

Over time, Mentor became more than a character; he came to represent wise, supportive guidance. The word entered modern usage through François Fénelon’s 17th-century novel Les Aventures de Télémaque, which portrayed Mentor as a moral teacher and philosophical guide.

 

This origin reflects what real mentorship is: not control, but encouragement – helping someone grow into their own decisions and identity.

 

<<Figure 2. Mentor and Telemachus, Having Survived the Storm, Are Spirited to the Island of Calypso on a Mast is a drawing by Bartolomeo Pinelli, 1808.>>

 

Mentee Experience

My first proper job was with a sign company that turned out to be a very small part of what was Tetley’s Brewery, which became Allied Lyons PLC. Lucky for me, as it catapulted me into the corporate world and the excitement of acquisitions and mergers. This is where I met my first mentor when I was a graduate trainee, and he offered me the opportunity to “carry his bags.” I’d worked with him when he was marketing director and I’d had a hand in his account at an advertising agency I’d worked at as a student.

 

I had recommended the acquisition and creation of a specialist division to service the sign company’s existing clients–banks, high street retailers, petrol companies–with point-of-sale. The problem was it just didn’t work. His solution – he made me the managing director at 27 years of age with a mission that was more of an outright challenge: “Do something with it or close it down.” You can guess that I did do something with it and that got me a place on the board and a reputation for being a trouble-shooter.

 

He encouraged me to do an MBA at the Bradford Management Centre to help supplement a detailed knowledge of business, which I had been working at simply through instinct. My experience at the Management Centre led me to become fully engaged in the academic world and ultimately to become the Business Development Director of the business school. I was very fortunate to be able to meet some of the great business authorities.

 

One of those was Sir John Harvey-Jones MBE (Figure 3), the first TV company doctor, a business guru, ex-Naval Intelligence, credited with saving the chemical organisation ICI. He told me that he had had a mentor, and I have a vivid memory of the analogy that he gave, describing the organisation as a pyramid where his mentor had picked him up and lifted him up the outside edge of the pyramid to engagement and understanding of what was happening at the top.

 

<<Figure 3. Sir John Harvey-Jones MBE (1924-2008).>>

 

The Dean of the business school became another mentor, an extraordinary personality with a great communication ability and a combination of wit and wisdom. Together, we exported the MBA programme, setting up franchise operations in the Middle East.

 

Another very powerful influencer who became my mentor showed me the power of teamwork and how to be able to use people in the team whose skills far exceeded my own.

 

The business school was such a stimulating and exciting environment, where it was possible to work with very skilled individuals in every discipline of business that you could imagine. And through a series of contacts that demonstrated the power of networking, I had been able to introduce the possibility of working with the England and Wales Cricket Board.

 

I had been invited to design a programme for the ECB to develop their coaching skills and to professionalise the game of cricket, and I had no idea how to do that. But I did know that people within the business school had that skill set. My mentor began putting together a list of skills and names of people who could fulfil that challenge. It was an extraordinary success. For the next ten years, we worked with a delegate from every first-class county, culminating in the creation of an elite group of coaches, and to some extent, we felt that we had influenced the game at a critical time, leading through to the winning of the Ashes in 2005.

 

We now reach a particularly rich and interesting element of mentorship where the roles between mentor and mentee become blurred.

 

Working with the BPIF (British Printing Industries Federation), we had persuaded the government to recognise that the printing industry was a thriving cluster as defined by Michael Porter, the Harvard business guru (Porter, 1990).

 

Armed with over £500,000 government investment we set about the establishment of a focus group for that gave a voice both to and from the key individuals in the industry. We were able to promote best practice in training, early adopters with environmental responsibilities and fly the commercial flag for the industry. A steering group provided that inestimable contribution of leadership based on mentor/mentee relationships.

 

Mentor Experience

Years later, I found myself more on the other side of the table as a mentor.

 

In making the transition from mentee to mentor, I often asked myself what it was that had been most useful to me. The first and perhaps most powerful lesson was the value of listening – really listening. It meant taking time not just to hear the surface issues, but to understand the deeper challenges behind the questions. Quite often you don’t immediately know what the answers are, and sometimes you’re not even sure what the right questions are. But beginning with a sound understanding is always the most important step.

 

When I have received feedback on my mentoring, one word has come up repeatedly: confidence. People have said, “You gave me the confidence” or “You gave me permission to fail.” That resonates deeply with me because it mirrors my own formative experiences. Once the issues were clear, I would try to strengthen understanding by sharing my own experiences – drawing on real, lived examples that could illuminate the current discussion.

 

Another recurring theme in my mentoring has been the question of implementation. I had read many MBA dissertations that were brilliant on paper but failed to translate into practice.

We often talked about this: there is little value in being able to recite the Boston Box or the Five Forces if you do not apply them. It is in the act of applying knowledge that you earn the respect of your peers – and, in time, achieve success.

 

For me, success has always been rooted in a mixture of ability and willingness. My role as a mentor was often to demonstrate to a mentee that they had both – that the ability was there, and that their willingness was enough to carry them forward. What remained was simply to put it into practice. That realisation can be a powerful turning point.

 

One example came when a mentee was struggling to move forward in the family firm. He faced the legacy of a management team, one of whom was clearly unable to deliver what was required. Eventually, he took the decision – a hard one – to let that person go. Several months later he reported back that the same individual had returned to thank him, having found another position where he could finally use his skills and thrive. That decision had not only helped the firm but freed the individual to succeed elsewhere.

 

Another instance showed the challenge – and reward – of building confidence. One of my mentees was in a demanding creative role but believed his contribution could only ever be technical. I encouraged him to step beyond the technical and attempt the creative elements as well. The result astonished him – and me. He produced work of superb quality. The best feedback I could ever have asked for came when he said, “When we started this project, you had a lot more confidence in my ability than I did. But you’ve helped me to realise it was there all along.”

 

And finally, I would stress the importance of making decisions. The key is not to expect perfection but to ensure you make more right decisions than wrong ones. As long as the balance is in your favour, you will be moving in the right direction. The only true mistake is making no decision at all.

 

Challenges and Misconceptions in Mentorship

Mentorship is not without its pitfalls. The very qualities that make it powerful – trust, closeness, shared goals – can also create dependency or blurred boundaries. I have seen mentees who lean so heavily on guidance that they delay making independent decisions. Equally, some mentors mistake their role for that of a parent or rescuer, forgetting that their true purpose is to equip, not control.

 

There are also mismatches in style and expectation. A mentor who thrives on high challenge may unintentionally discourage a mentee who needs more gradual confidence-building. Likewise, a mentee who expects step-by-step instructions may feel frustrated when a mentor offers questions instead of answers.

From my own experience, setting expectations early is essential. This includes clarity about the scope of the relationship, the frequency of meetings, and the understanding that mistakes are part of the process – provided they are learned from. The “authority to fail – once” lesson I received remains one of the most effective boundaries I’ve ever seen in practice.

One of my most ambitious projects was the creation of a conference for the printing industry. I was convinced that if we wanted to influence the future of print, we needed to capture the attention not just of printers themselves, but of those who bought print, specified print, and shaped its role in wider communications. Up until then, conferences had mostly been gatherings of printers talking amongst themselves, recycling the same problems. I wanted to break that mould.

In my experience, mentorship appears in many guises. Sometimes it is formal, part of a company or a university programme. Sometimes it happens informally, almost by accident, when two people find common ground. And sometimes it is part of a structured effort in the community. However it begins, the aim is usually the same: to bridge the gap between potential and achievement, and to give the benefit of lived experience to someone who is still finding their way.

It’s not just apocryphal – research backs this up. A meta-analysis of more than a hundred studies (Underhill, 2007) found that mentorship has positive effects on everything from job performance and satisfaction to confidence and wellbeing. In short, it makes a measurable difference to both careers and people.

The same is true here in the UK. The EDUCATE programme – a research-based accelerator tied to a university – showed how trust and goal setting are central to good relationships (UCL, 2021). A study of public sector leaders identified clear signs of effective mentoring on both sides, offering a framework that others can use.

I have worked with the King’s Trust (formerly the Prince’s Trust) for many years and have seen first-hand how it offers one of the most robust real-world examples. The King’s Trust has supported more than a million young people since 1976, with three-quarters of them moving on into work, training, or education. In 2022–23 alone, 67,000 young people took part, and nine out of ten reported stronger skills in communication, teamwork, and confidence

(King’s Trust, 2023). Its Enterprise Programme has helped over 86,000 entrepreneurs start businesses with the support of long-term mentors.

Examples like these show that mentorship is not a soft option or an optional extra. It is a practice with real impact – one that can change careers, open doors, and shape lives.

The Origin of the Word ‘Mentor’

The word mentor comes from Homer’s Odyssey, where Mentor (Figure 2) was a trusted friend of Odysseus. When Odysseus left for war, he asked Mentor to guide his son, Telemachus. Later, the goddess Athena – symbol of wisdom – appears in Mentor’s form to support the boy’s growth.

Over time, Mentor became more than a character; he came to represent wise, supportive guidance. The word entered modern usage through François Fénelon’s 17th-century novel Les Aventures de Télémaque, which portrayed Mentor as a moral teacher and philosophical guide.

This origin reflects what real mentorship is: not control, but encouragement – helping someone grow into their own decisions and identity.

Mentee Experience

My first proper job was with a sign company that turned out to be a very small part of what was Tetley’s Brewery, which became Allied Lyons PLC. Lucky for me, as it catapulted me into the corporate world and the excitement of acquisitions and mergers. This is where I met my first mentor when I was a graduate trainee, and he offered me the opportunity to “carry his bags.” I’d worked with him when he was marketing director and I’d had a hand in his account at an advertising agency I’d worked at as a student.

I had recommended the acquisition and creation of a specialist division to service the sign company’s existing clients–banks, high street retailers, petrol companies–with point-of-sale. The problem was it just didn’t work. His solution – he made me the managing director at 27 years of age with a mission that was more of an outright challenge: “Do something with it or close it down.” You can guess that I did do something with it and that got me a place on the board and a reputation for being a trouble-shooter.

He encouraged me to do an MBA at the Bradford Management Centre to help supplement a detailed knowledge of business, which I had been working at simply through instinct. My experience at the Management Centre led me to become fully engaged in the academic world and ultimately to become the Business Development Director of the business school. I was very fortunate to be able to meet some of the great business authorities.

One of those was Sir John Harvey-Jones MBE (Figure 3), the first TV company doctor, a business guru, ex-Naval Intelligence, credited with saving the chemical organisation ICI. He told me that he had had a mentor, and I have a vivid memory of the analogy that he gave, describing the organisation as a pyramid where his mentor had picked him up and lifted him up the outside edge of the pyramid to engagement and understanding of what was happening at the top.

The Dean of the business school became another mentor, an extraordinary personality with a great communication ability and a combination of wit and wisdom. Together, we exported the MBA programme, setting up franchise operations in the Middle East.

Another very powerful influencer who became my mentor showed me the power of teamwork and how to be able to use people in the team whose skills far exceeded my own.

The business school was such a stimulating and exciting environment, where it was possible to work with very skilled individuals in every discipline of business that you could imagine. And through a series of contacts that demonstrated the power of networking, I had been able to introduce the possibility of working with the England and Wales Cricket Board.

I had been invited to design a programme for the ECB to develop their coaching skills and to professionalise the game of cricket, and I had no idea how to do that. But I did know that people within the business school had that skill set. My mentor began putting together a list of skills and names of people who could fulfil that challenge. It was an extraordinary success. For the next ten years, we worked with a delegate from every first-class county, culminating in the creation of an elite group of coaches, and to some extent, we felt that we had influenced the game at a critical time, leading through to the winning of the Ashes in 2005.

We now reach a particularly rich and interesting element of mentorship where the roles between mentor and mentee become blurred.

Working with the BPIF (British Printing Industries Federation), we had persuaded the government to recognise that the printing industry was a thriving cluster as defined by Michael Porter, the Harvard business guru (Porter, 1990).

Armed with over £500,000 government investment we set about the establishment of a focus group for that gave a voice both to and from the key individuals in the industry. We were able to promote best practice in training, early adopters with environmental responsibilities and fly the commercial flag for the industry. A steering group provided that inestimable contribution of leadership based on mentor/mentee relationships.

Mentor Experience

Years later, I found myself more on the other side of the table as a mentor.

In making the transition from mentee to mentor, I often asked myself what it was that had been most useful to me. The first and perhaps most powerful lesson was the value of listening – really listening. It meant taking time not just to hear the surface issues, but to understand the deeper challenges behind the questions. Quite often you don’t immediately know what the answers are, and sometimes you’re not even sure what the right questions are. But beginning with a sound understanding is always the most important step.

When I have received feedback on my mentoring, one word has come up repeatedly: confidence. People have said, “You gave me the confidence” or “You gave me permission to fail.” That resonates deeply with me because it mirrors my own formative experiences. Once the issues were clear, I would try to strengthen understanding by sharing my own experiences – drawing on real, lived examples that could illuminate the current discussion.

Another recurring theme in my mentoring has been the question of implementation. I had read many MBA dissertations that were brilliant on paper but failed to translate into practice.

We often talked about this: there is little value in being able to recite the Boston Box or the Five Forces if you do not apply them. It is in the act of applying knowledge that you earn the respect of your peers – and, in time, achieve success.

For me, success has always been rooted in a mixture of ability and willingness. My role as a mentor was often to demonstrate to a mentee that they had both – that the ability was there, and that their willingness was enough to carry them forward. What remained was simply to put it into practice. That realisation can be a powerful turning point.

One example came when a mentee was struggling to move forward in the family firm. He faced the legacy of a management team, one of whom was clearly unable to deliver what was required. Eventually, he took the decision – a hard one – to let that person go. Several months later he reported back that the same individual had returned to thank him, having found another position where he could finally use his skills and thrive. That decision had not only helped the firm but freed the individual to succeed elsewhere.

Another instance showed the challenge – and reward – of building confidence. One of my mentees was in a demanding creative role but believed his contribution could only ever be technical. I encouraged him to step beyond the technical and attempt the creative elements as well. The result astonished him – and me. He produced work of superb quality. The best feedback I could ever have asked for came when he said, “When we started this project, you had a lot more confidence in my ability than I did. But you’ve helped me to realise it was there all along.”

And finally, I would stress the importance of making decisions. The key is not to expect perfection but to ensure you make more right decisions than wrong ones. As long as the balance is in your favour, you will be moving in the right direction. The only true mistake is making no decision at all.

Challenges and Misconceptions in Mentorship

Mentorship is not without its pitfalls. The very qualities that make it powerful – trust, closeness, shared goals – can also create dependency or blurred boundaries. I have seen mentees who lean so heavily on guidance that they delay making independent decisions. Equally, some mentors mistake their role for that of a parent or rescuer, forgetting that their true purpose is to equip, not control.

There are also mismatches in style and expectation. A mentor who thrives on high challenge may unintentionally discourage a mentee who needs more gradual confidence-building. Likewise, a mentee who expects step-by-step instructions may feel frustrated when a mentor offers questions instead of answers.

From my own experience, setting expectations early is essential. This includes clarity about the scope of the relationship, the frequency of meetings, and the understanding that mistakes are part of the process – provided they are learned from. The “authority to fail – once” lesson I received remains one of the most effective boundaries I’ve ever seen in practice.

One of my most ambitious projects was the creation of a conference for the printing industry. I was convinced that if we wanted to influence the future of print, we needed to capture the attention not just of printers themselves, but of those who bought print, specified print, and shaped its role in wider communications. Up until then, conferences had mostly been gatherings of printers talking amongst themselves, recycling the same problems. I wanted to break that mould.

My vision was to create a genuine marketplace for ideas, where the role of print could be debated in the full context of communications – including its competitors and its place alongside digital media. To do that, we had to design an event that would appeal to marketeers, print buyers, and specifiers. That idea became the Visual Media Conference (Figure 4), which I went on to run for ten years.

The risk was enormous. It had never been done before in this way, and the subject matter had to be exciting enough to draw in a new audience. I pushed the boundaries, bringing in speakers who talked about holograms, about multi-sensory marketing, and even one from a South American bank that used a combination of direct mail, online tools, and perfume to attract new customers. We succeeded in attracting our target audience – and crucially, we made sure printers were in the room to engage with them, to listen, and to understand their real concerns and opportunities.

The result was extraordinary. The conference grew into an international event supported by blue-chip companies and regularly drew an audience of more than 300 people. During the COVID lockdown, we took it online for three days and reached thousands around the world. The success of the project was not mine alone. It depended on the goodwill of many, and on the small leadership team that shared the vision and pulled it together. In that process, roles blurred: mentors became mentees, and mentees became mentors. It remains for me the best example of what is possible when vision and trust combine to create something exceptional.

Life Mentorship Beyond the Office

Mentorship does not stop at the office door. Some of the most formative guidance I’ve received has come from unexpected places – conversations at a kitchen table, advice from community leaders, or simply observing how someone carries themselves in difficult circumstances.

In life mentorship, the focus often shifts from skills to values: integrity, resilience, empathy, and perspective. I think of the people who have influenced how I approach family, manage stress, and maintain balance.

Just as in business, life mentors reveal blind spots and encourage growth, but the currency is often trust and personal example rather than formal frameworks. Sometimes, the lesson isn’t even verbal – it’s in watching how someone treats others, makes sacrifices, or recovers from setbacks.

The most powerful example I can recall came from a colleague faced with the decision of whether to proceed with a strategic plan during the Covid lockdown. It would have been easy – even understandable – to abandon the plan in the face of such uncertainty. The future looked fragile, and he had the added burden of explaining to the workforce just how uncertain things really were.

Nevertheless, he pushed forward. The decision carried enormous pressure, but it also delivered enormous success. What stood out even more than the outcome, though, was his underlying concern for the people around him. At a time when it would have been natural to retreat into self-preservation, he found the capacity to show empathy.

He recognised the hidden struggles of individuals within the workforce, brought them into the open, and created a culture of support at a time when the pressures of survival could so easily have obscured that need. The lesson I carry from him is that true leadership in difficult circumstances is not only about making the hard decisions; it is about making them while still finding space for compassion.

My vision was to create a genuine marketplace for ideas, where the role of print could be debated in the full context of communications – including its competitors and its place alongside digital media. To do that, we had to design an event that would appeal to marketeers, print buyers, and specifiers. That idea became the Visual Media Conference (Figure 4), which I went on to run for ten years.

 

<<Figure 4. Visual Media Conference (VMC) 2023 logo designed by Zak Lebetkin.>>

 

The risk was enormous. It had never been done before in this way, and the subject matter had to be exciting enough to draw in a new audience. I pushed the boundaries, bringing in speakers who talked about holograms, about multi-sensory marketing, and even one from a South American bank that used a combination of direct mail, online tools, and perfume to attract new customers. We succeeded in attracting our target audience – and crucially, we made sure printers were in the room to engage with them, to listen, and to understand their real concerns and opportunities.

 

The result was extraordinary. The conference grew into an international event supported by blue-chip companies and regularly drew an audience of more than 300 people. During the COVID lockdown, we took it online for three days and reached thousands around the world. The success of the project was not mine alone. It depended on the goodwill of many, and on the small leadership team that shared the vision and pulled it together. In that process, roles blurred: mentors became mentees, and mentees became mentors. It remains for me the best example of what is possible when vision and trust combine to create something exceptional.

 

Life Mentorship Beyond the Office

Mentorship does not stop at the office door. Some of the most formative guidance I’ve received has come from unexpected places – conversations at a kitchen table, advice from community leaders, or simply observing how someone carries themselves in difficult circumstances.

 

In life mentorship, the focus often shifts from skills to values: integrity, resilience, empathy, and perspective. I think of the people who have influenced how I approach family, manage stress, and maintain balance.

 

Just as in business, life mentors reveal blind spots and encourage growth, but the currency is often trust and personal example rather than formal frameworks. Sometimes, the lesson isn’t even verbal – it’s in watching how someone treats others, makes sacrifices, or recovers from setbacks.

 

The most powerful example I can recall came from a colleague faced with the decision of whether to proceed with a strategic plan during the Covid lockdown. It would have been easy – even understandable – to abandon the plan in the face of such uncertainty. The future looked fragile, and he had the added burden of explaining to the workforce just how uncertain things really were.

 

Nevertheless, he pushed forward. The decision carried enormous pressure, but it also delivered enormous success. What stood out even more than the outcome, though, was his underlying concern for the people around him. At a time when it would have been natural to retreat into self-preservation, he found the capacity to show empathy.

 

He recognised the hidden struggles of individuals within the workforce, brought them into the open, and created a culture of support at a time when the pressures of survival could so easily have obscured that need. The lesson I carry from him is that true leadership in difficult circumstances is not only about making the hard decisions; it is about making them while still finding space for compassion.

Conclusion

Looking back, I see mentorship not as a chapter in my life but as a constant thread running through it. From my earliest experiences as a mentee – learning to listen, to experiment, and to grow in confidence – to my later years as a mentor, guiding others through difficult decisions and new opportunities, the pattern is clear. Mentorship works because it is human: a relationship of trust, learning, and shared responsibility.

The evidence confirms what experience teaches. Underhill’s (2007) meta-analysis, along with UK initiatives such as the EDUCATE programme (UCL, 2021) and the enduring impact of the King’s Trust (2023), all show that mentoring has measurable benefits in careers, education, and society. But beyond the data, it is the lived reality that matters most. Each story – whether in the boardroom, on the cricket field, or in the midst of a global pandemic – points to the same truth: mentorship changes lives.

And so the responsibility to respond to this call to action rests with each of us. We should all seek out mentors, not only for the guidance they can give but for the example they set. Equally, we should be ready to step into the role of mentor ourselves, to pass on what we have learned and to nurture the potential of others - not to create copies but to help form originals.

And so the responsibility to respond to this call to action rests with each of us. We should all seek out mentors, not only for the guidance they can give but for the example they set. Equally, we should be ready to step into the role of mentor ourselves, to pass on what we have learned and to nurture the potential of others - not to create copies but to help form originals.