Student, Teacher, Friend: Key Relationships Every Woman Needs

Everyone needs a Student. This is someone you can pour into and who is behind you in a certain area of life.

• Many people underestimate the value of the student role because they are self-centered, and it doesn't seem to benefit them. 
• However, having a student in your life can strengthen your own knowledge in a certain area and give you a fresh perspective on it.

Everyone needs a Teacher. This is someone who is ahead of you in some area and can pour into you.

• A teacher can be either a mentor or a coach. Make sure you know the difference and are very intentional about which one you bring into your life.
• A coach is typically someone you pay to help you develop skills in a specific area over time. This relationship is typically hands on and professional in tone.
• A mentor is usually someone you do not pay to help you grow and develop as a person. This relationship is much more informal and tends to be more personal in nature.
• You can approach most coaches at any time (as long as they're taking on clients), but with mentors, you must be more sensitive to their schedules.
• Coaches and mentors are not the same as therapists or surrogate parents. They are often extremely busy and do not have time for coddling or intense emotional support.

Everyone needs a Friend. This is someone who is basically on the same level as you, so the two of you can encourage each other.

• Age may or may not be a factor. In other words, you can be a teacher to someone older than you or a student to someone younger than you, depending on the context.
• Different seasons of your life may require an imbalance of these relationships. In general, you should expect to have more teachers when you’re younger and more students as you get older, while friends are necessary at every stage of life. (Ecclesiastes 4:9-10)
• Use your network to connect with people in each of these categories. This can include church and other social organizations, your workplace or online groups/masterminds.
• One resource I have used for years is Meetup.com. This website allows you to search for people who have similar interests to yours and meet in your area. I've used it to find several great writing groups that have greatly enriched my social life.

Action Steps:

1. Take 5-10 minutes to identify which people in your life fall into each of the three categories of relationships described in this episode (student, teacher, friend).
2. If you don’t know anyone who meets the criteria for one or more of these categories, jot down some ideas for how you can meet people who might fill these roles.