Choose your mentors wisely, protect your precious ideas, and when the time comes, eau de Own It!

Choose your mentors wisely, protect your precious ideas, and when the time comes, eau de Own It!

Smart people know the power of having a supportive team around them including mentors and coaches. They also know only to go to the right kind of people for the right kind of help. They know to only approach a qualified coach and mentor who specialises in the area they’re seeking to grow.

They wouldn't go to a depressed cynical friend for advice on personal fulfilment, they would know that it would be wiser to consult a successful personal development mentor or life coach.

For business development they wouldn’t seek support from a cousin who’s never run a business before, they would know to go a qualified business advisor with a proven track record.

For money worries, they wouldn’t consult a broke old buddy, they would go to the bank or a reputable financial advisor.

For health and fitness, they wouldn't ask in the bakery, they would see a doctor, a certified personal trainer and nutritionist.

For emotional difficulties, they would know it would be wiser to consult a qualified therapist than the same family member they have a conflict with.

It all seems very obvious in those fields, but we don’t seem to apply this same principle when it comes to our creativity, and many of us seek artistic approval and support from our competitors and those who are least qualified to judge or support us. Yes of course it is wise to study all the work of those musical artists whom inspire you to be your very best, yes you should study with the best musical teacher you can afford, but ultimately only you are qualified to be the judge of your own creative art. That is what being an artist is all about. You have to eventually get to a place where you know you are good enough, and not seek validation from others who will perceive a request for approval as a sign of weakness and lack of confidence on your part. Only then will your art be desirable to your audience. You must please and approve of yourself first.

Smart people also know to only share their million £ ideas and creativity with successful optimists, and only once the idea or skill has grown strong enough to withstand passing cynics. While your new singing vocal abilities or songwriting ideas are delicate seedlings in their infancy, you must protect and nurture them as a gardener does in a nursery, safe from passing naysayers and jealous predators who may want to nibble up their tender leaves for breakfast, declare that they will never grow to be big and strong, or break their little hearts with a cold frost!

We've all met people who don’t appear particularly conventionally or symmetrically beautiful, and yet they exude a magnetism that makes them confusingly attractive and popular. What is that secret scent they’re wearing? It’s called ‘Confidence, eau de Owning It, by Not Seeking Anyone Else’s Approval’, and I suggest you start wearing it.

Protect your self and your art, use mentors and coaches but be selective about choosing the right person for support, be smart and know when the only qualified person is you! 

Hazel Sim