She sought me out because she felt that there was something she could learn from me. That’s what she told me and she wanted me to be her mentor.
Well, very little mentoring went on because she talked all the time.
Honestly. All. The. Time.
She already had her answers. She didn’t truly want to learn from me as much as she wanted me to validate her direction and experiences.
I wasn’t blindsided by this; I already knew. She wasn’t ready.
There have been a few occasions when I absolutely knew I was in the presence of great wisdom.
And in those moments, I…
[tweet_box]Defer to the wisdom in the room and shut up.[/tweet_box]It’s in my best interest to do so. I don’t try to match their wisdom and I refrain from using the words, “I know” because obviously I don’t. Otherwise such a meeting would have never been orchestrated. Even when these meetings confirm something I heard I still know enough to keep quiet and listen. You don’t have to try and validate your presence through useless chatter. You don’t have to prove your worthiness. You were sent there and they already know. So you can just sit and soak it all in.
This very thing happened to me again this week.
I thought I was going to a business meeting but it turned out to be one of those moments where you simply shut up, take notes and thank God for allowing you to share time and space with this person.
I left validated. I left knowing that I was headed in the right direction plus she gave me a great landmarks and I knew she wasn’t in her office saying, “she talks too much.”
When you know who you are you can appreciate these encounters and enjoy them and be thankful that you were in a space where you could benefit from them.
You didn’t talk your way out of something precious and ordained!
#ThisWomanKnows when to keep silent and simply receive.
Lisa N. Alexander is the author and founder of This Woman Knows and What Million-Dollar Brands Know. She is an award-winning filmmaker, director, producer, and writer and is the owner of PrettyWork Creative.