What does the ideal mentor look like? First and foremost, a mentor is someone with outstanding character that you can trust with confidential information and that will always keep your best interest in mind. They must then have the ability to challenge, teach and reinforce. That is the exact description of my friend and mentor Dr. Lew Sterrett.

I have the utmost respect for his character and integrity, knowing that he is a man of strong faith and convictions. He is also a man that understands that you never arrive at a state of perfection, but always strive towards it. Something I always value is that he coaches the whole person. He asks about my work life, my home life and my personal character development, knowing that a person cannot be effective if there is a weakness in any life phase. Once identifying a weakness that must be addressed, his ability to teach and communicate concepts in an understandable way is uncanny. Then, holding me accountable, and teaching me to hold myself accountable through healthy habits like journaling, is encouraging of each small progression. He often repeats his philosophy that in order to make a 100% change, it takes lots of 1% changes stacked together. Thinking of getting just 1% better each day feels much more manageable than the daunting task of reaching the longer term goal.

Beyond just the activity of mentoring, I always felt that he sincerely cared about me as a person and my personal growth.

For more information on Dr. Lew Sterrett and his work visit sermononthemount.org