The Mentor's Spirit: Life Lessons on Leadership and the Art of Encouragement

This book translates well to educators, people in business, or those who are looking to improve their relationships. Her ideas about mentoring can make communication clearer and leaders emerge. Another book that I recommend is "He Never Called Again".These two books are highly recommended.

I wasn't expecting much from this tape. The book hadn't impressed me very much and I was thinking, "same old..." However, as I listened I realized that Sinetar really has uncovered new ways to view mentoring. She distinguishes mentoring spirit from mentors in a unique, compelling way. Think of light flowing through a pane of glass. We care about the light -- not the glass. Similarly, the mentor is only a transmitter. What we want is the spirit transmitted by the mentor.From this perspective, any person, group or even physical object can be a mentor - anything that embodies a spirit that offers us insight, understanding or support. John Muir, for instance, chose nature as a mentor to escape a horrendous family situation. And she never met the artist Ben Shahn, but she learned from his artwork. I can relate: I learned from Cynthia Cooper's book She's Got Game (which I also reviewed) -- and I've never held a basketball.Most important, our own silence helps us grow and any meditation, quiet time or sabbatical can enrich us the way a mentor might. There are many other gems on this tape and I plan to listen again...and again. Perhaps most interesting is the glimpse we get into Sinetar's own life and business. We learn that she regularly takes sabbaticals lasting several months -- and once a week she won't work at all. She no longer attends corporate dinners in the evening, although it's normally considered part of the consultant's job. Sinetar recognizes that people have to be careful as they operate within an organization, and I think she underestimates the dfificulty of carving out space in a structured hierarchy. However, I have met folks who swim with ease in the corporate sea, and those will probably resonate even more, as Sinetar gracefully combines spirituality, personal growth and business systems. I was reminded of Carolyn Myss: Despite widely divergent styles and content, both authors create and integrate. Sinretar is far more accessible than Myss and her spiritual challenge is more of a gentle hill than an icy mountain. But don't expect Sinetar to offer a cake walk. One of the best parts of the book compares Olympic level goals with more mundane, amateur achievements, and she cites Neil Postman's wonderful book about our entertainment culture.We want everything to be like television: no effort, no preparation and pleasantly entertaining, she says. As a former college professor, I have to agree: I've heard a college senior say, "I like this text because it has a lot of pictures." Heading for a vacation trip? Pack this one in the car and prepare to come back refreshed and, quite possibly, changed.

Marsha Sinetar, author of The Mentor's Spirit, also wrote Do What You Love, The Money Will Follow, (1987), a book that was influencial in my decision to pursue teaching as a profession instead of pursuing the almighty buck. Because of that fact, I began reading The Mentor's Spirit. I enjoyed the inspiring words of wisdom, just as much or even more so than her first book I read.Rather than a step by step guide to mentoring, Sinetar focuses on what she calls the mentor's spirit. This book elaborates on the mentor and the mentor's spirit, both of which affirm our potential to become 'distinctive contributors within the context of our life in community.' Each Life Lesson provides insights on the art of encouragement, calling the reader to make a difference in their world. She takes a somewhat philosophical approach, interspersed with personal stories. However, this book is not for everyone since some will disagree with Sinetar's chapter on Spiritual Intelligence.

The Mentor's Spirit lifts what is often thought of in corporate America as at best a duty and at worst a chore to a calling. Sinetar uses case study and example to instruct and inspire.She place high value on mentoring as way to practice good stewardship with our God-given talents. At it's most effective, mentoring is a sponateous response to the desire to help others grow and succeed.In this world of chaos and confusion and confusion, as usual, Marsha has cut through the complexity and with elegant simplicity instructs each of us to discover our unique calling and inspires us to become "artists of encouragement." The Mentor's Spirit is a model for making a difference in our world.Read it and learn! Read it and be inspired!

I'd use this for corporate - leadership seminars. with people -- like managers, counselors and the like. Every chapter unfolds a bit of the author's personal climb up the success ladder, as well as 'life lessons' on what she calls the art of encouragement. An easy or a deep read, depending on the level of attention and background one brings to the book.