RE: Good things happen in clusters

January is National Mentoring Month and a good time to return to the idea that success doesn't happen in a vacuum.

We've talked about this a lot in my writers' marketing group, that the more people in a circle who share their talents and energies, the more that combined energy and goal-tending is going to result in shared success among several members and not just the success of one individual. If you're thinking, hmmm, this sounds like collective consciousness, well, it is.

Dan Goodwin refers to it as "creative karma" at The Creativity Portal, where he cites "7 Reasons Why Supporting Others Increases Your Own Creativity."

This all relates to mentoring for the simple reason that creative minds working together can accomplish a great deal more than individuals riding the trail all on their lonesome.

If you think you could be a good creativity mentor, consider reaching out to someone you know who could use the help. This simple experiment should more than amply prove these theories. Or, if you've worked with a mentor in the past, now's the time to tell them Thanks and refer others to them as a gesture of good will. Or, if you really need some feedback on your work, consider finding a mentor, either a professionally certified one or a longstanding family member or friend who is willing to help you move forward with your work.

Look, we creative types may seem to assert a kind of artistic temperament that requires that we make our art in solitude, but the fact is, we all do much better when we find ways to create together. Better, because we have a lot more energy together to do things that matter, and there's nothing like the feeling of support from fellow creatives to motivate us toward our own private horizons.