Ideally, mentors would be a couple of life stages ahead of the mentees in their mentoring group (see chart below). They’ll be familiar with the experiences of their mentees…they’ll know how to speak to their struggles and the answers to the questions they’ll be asked.
However, while preferable, we understand this might not be possible. The most important thing to think about is choosing mentors and mentees wisely. Some younger people are old souls and very spiritually mature. They can make great mentors of peers or even those older than them who aren’t quite as established in their spiritual journey.
This chart isn’t the end-all, be-all, it’s just a suggestion based on what we’ve seen work. The idea is that a mentor should feel confident mentoring people two or more life stages behind them…
| YOUR LIFE STAGE | WHO YOU’RE BEST EQUIPPED TO MENTOR |
| Young singles, out of school | High schoolers, college freshmen |
| Young marrieds, no kids | College students, recent grads |
| Marrieds, young kids | Young singles, out of school |
| Marrieds, older kids | Young marrieds, no kids |
| Marrieds, adults kids, no grandchildren | Marrieds, young kids |
| Marrieds, adult kids with grandchildren | Marrieds, older kids |
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