Above all else

I volunteer as a mentor for some programmes, and for a few people who approach me on a 1-1 basis. It's one of the more rewarding things I do in my life. For the avoidance of doubt though, mentoring doesn't mean I've got it all together, and doesn't involve dumping my so-called wisdom and experience onto others.  It's often true that I have some useful experience or understanding to share with these younger friends. But most times, my life context is just not the same as those of my friends. It's common for older folks to say, "in my time, we had it tougher! We worked harder! We know what it takes!" But I've found that my younger friends often have better skills and insight than I did at their age, and different, possibly even more complex challenges that I didn't face.  It would be supremely arrogant to think that I know the way for them. So really, it works best when I just ask lots of open ended questions, and we figure out together what is n