Who looks you in the eye and says, “given your skills, you could do better…”

“You have enough leverage to really make a difference.”

“What would happen if you doubled the amount you donated?”

“Could you set aside the fear and go faster?”

“I know you’re holding back…”

It takes love and kindness and confidence to bring the truth to a friend you care about. If you’re insulating yourself from these conversations, who benefits?

To obtain an insightful understanding of protégés, mentors need to have a personal relationship with them. [...] This means that excellent mentors are accessible and available.  But they also need to exhibit the human skills of listening, caring, communicating openly, and giving constructive feedback.  To conclude, taking the time to truly know protégés is arguably the most important of the mentoring virtues.

- Elements of Mentoring by W. Brad Johnson & Charles R. Ridley.