When I was in New York City recently I went to the Museum of Natural History and bumped into two historical icons.
Do you know who they are?
I also happened to read the biographies of both Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt.
One of the things I’ve learned from a mentor of mine was that you don’t have to know someone personally to be mentored by them. In fact they don’t even have to be alive.
That was a really neat concept to me and I embraced it fully. From then on I started reading more biographies of amazing women and men who I would’ve liked to be mentored by.
I get the privilege of spending time with these giants of history and learning about their innermost thoughts, seeing their life experiences, and stories up close.
One common thread amongst virtually all of them is that they were always reading books!
Another cool thing I wasn’t expecting was to see how regular these people actually are. They weren’t perfect and had many faults in their character. So it makes me feel like I too can live up to my greatest potential with my faults and imperfections.
I’ve read a few dozen biographies at this point in my life and each time I complete one I have the privilege of taking on the qualities, virtues, insights, and character traits of these amazing people.
I also get to learn from their mistakes so I don’t repeat them. I take what’s useful and I disregard what’s not.
It was great running into these two old mentors and having a moment with them. I didn’t see statues…I saw all the lessons and insights I learned from them.
