Mentors

I was reading this morning about someone I know named Angie, whose mentor named Tedd has died of cancer. Angie works in TV, and Tedd was her first news director who mentored her and pushed her to succeed. I was reminded of my mentors. There have been several people in my life who have mentored me in various areas. My drama mentor was Skelly Warren. He was filling in as my Drama teacher at PC, when my regular teacher went on sabbatical. Skelly was tough. I remember he taught me a great deal about concentration. During rehearsals, he would stand next to me and yell in my ear, while I was reciting my lines. I had to hear what he was saying but block it out at the same time. Despite his believing in perfection, he also believed in being as loose as you could on stage. We did physical exercises, as well as mental exercises. Technique was important, but the main thing was being a total person. My business mentor was John Brusack. He was the merchandise manager at Belk, when I was a buyer. He taught me many things about business, mainly about how to stay ahead of the curve and to make people want to buy things. He showed me how to be an innovator and be a merchandiser. But the most important thing he taught me was to never forget the people around you. You cannot succeed without the people. No matter how big your ego gets, you must know that you are nothing without the people who got you there. So, share your knowledge with those coming up. That way, you will live on through them. It makes all the difference in the world. Thanks Skelly and John.