One Apple A Day #703 - Betsy
A few months ago, while I was surfing the web, looking for real stories about mentoring, I found this lengthy article titled, "The Most Famous Reverse Mentoring Story in History" by Peter Gregoire.
It's a great piece of writing, absolutely worth 10 minutes of your precious attention.
In short, it's the story of how a teenager named Betsy, driven by her innocent irreverence and her candid curiosity, helped Napoleone transform his exile into an opportunity.
I love this story from the day I read it. Not only is a compelling example of the power of reverse mentoring. It also shows the potential that we can unlock if we connect with human beings behind and beyond the roles or positions they may have in society.
These days, this story resonates even more.
Aren't we all experiencing a sort of exile? Our houses turned into many tiny islands of St. Helena. Separated, at least physically, from the rest of the world.
So I was thinking, who can be my Betsy in this exile? What are the open, innocent and challenging questions she would ask? What would throw me off balance but also rejuvenated and re-energize my mind and spirit?
Maybe my inner child asking things such as "Are you having fun? Why are you doing that?"
This is going to be an interesting conversation.