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What prompted you to write Reverse Mentoring?
My own younger mentors have been one of the most transformational forces in my ministry and life. I stumbled into this discipline several years ago and began practicing it without even knowing the words "reverse mentoring." In my case, younger leaders came to my rescue as I was drowning (unaware) in obsolescence. They have taught me so much about life, spirituality, and leadership that I felt the book just had to be written to share reverse mentoring so that other leaders could experience its benefits.
How is this book different from Off-Road Disciplines, your first book that introduces this concept?
This book has all new stories because I've had a lot more experience with reverse mentoring now and have had the chance to think it through in more depth. Plus, I discuss specific benefits of |
the discipline for evangelism, communication, and leadership. The book also lays out practical ways that individuals and ministries can implement the reverse mentoring discipline as a systematic part of developing themselves.
The first chapter is titled Identity: "I am not cool." What are one or two lessons you've learned about being cool?
Mainly, I've learned to be OK with the fact that I am not cool. Also, my young friends have taught me that Boomers trying to be cool are doomed to failure. But I've also observed that cool has the shelf life of the average ripe tomato. That means it erodes very quickly for all of us. My wife Janet and I love the moment when we get to tell an audience of Millennials that their younger brothers and sisters already see them as hopelessly obsolete, that in fact they will grow up to be us--only sooner.
In a backwards way, then, the decay of cool is what we all have in common; it's a kind of glue if we think about it the right way.
Who is the book for and why should they read it?
The book is written for any Christian leader who wants to grow using a discipline that is fun, absolutely free (except for the coffee you'll probably have to buy), and extremely transformational when given a chance. And the issue here is not just young helping old. It can apply to any cross-cultural learning: people of color helping Anglos, women helping men, all of us learning from unlikely sources--that's what makes the mentoring reverse.
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What are the big surprises in the book?
How easy it is to get something so simple so wrong. When I talk with my Boomer peers about this subject, they often seem stressed by the prospect of the core practice of reverse mentoring: listening. This does not come easily to my tribe. Our dialect is declarative, not interrogative. The notion of asking questions but otherwise not talking is almost beyond the imagination of some leaders I meet.
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What's your response to those who might be reluctant?
The key to reverse mentoring is the "want to" more than the "how to," which is why the book is not an instruction manual--although plenty of practical information is provided for individuals and organizations--because that's not really necessary. Leaders who grasp the growth potential of this practice will humble themselves to stop talking and ask the first question. After that, a reverse mentoring partnership is managed with the tools that make any relationship healthy.
What's one thing a reader could do today to begin a reverse mentoring relationship?
Choose an aspect of technology that you don't understand or work with well--perhaps setting up a Facebook profile. Ask a younger person to help you. The tech issue is one of the most common starting points for reverse mentoring partnerships because it tends to be the biggest knowledge gap between the generations. But any issue can act as the catalyst for learning. I have an African-American friend, for example, who has started me on the path to understanding hip hop, an enormous cultural influence that older Anglos (like me) tend to ignore. So the main thing is simple: start.
What did you like most about writing this book?
My favorite part of the writing was doing chapters like "I Do Not Get It," and "I Am Not Relevant." The truth is always our friend, so Reverse Mentoring begins and ends not with adopting some faddish practice, but with humility. It's just about the most fun you can have as a leader; it is also deeply spiritual. |
Maybe the best part is that reverse mentoring is the best way to engage others in conventional mentoring. Once I have asked enough questions of my mentors (we have dozens), they usually will start asking me things. This exchange allows us to help each other using the assets we both bring to the table. My young friend may be able to explain the culture of Facebook, and perhaps I can talk about what goes into being married for 30 years. Now that's what I call a fair trade, and a good time.
Reverse Mentoring: How Young Leaders Can Transform the Church, and Why We Should Let Them is in stores now.
Earl Creps is a veteran pastor and teacher who directs the Doctor of Ministry program at Assemblies of God Theological Seminary. He is the author of Off-Road Disciplines: Spiritual Adventures of Missional Leaders. |
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