January 17, 2024
Photo: National Retail Federation Blog
NRF Big Show: Magic Johnson Hails the Benefits of Mentorship
In a broad conversation covering corporate and personal growth with John Furner, president and CEO of Walmart U.S., at NRF 2024: Retail’s Big Show, Earvin “Magic” Johnson loudly promoted the value of finding mentors to guide your career as well as serving as mentors for others.
Beyond his legendary NBA career, Johnson has found success in the business world with movie theaters, fast-food franchises, real estate, healthcare, and insurance. Through Magic Johnson Enterprises (MJE), he has helped bring chains like Starbucks, 24 Hour Fitness, and T.G.I. Friday’s to underserved urban communities.
Early in his NBA career, Johnson asked Jerry Buss, the late owner of the Los Angeles Lakers, to be his first business mentor. Johnson said, “He really gave me so many great nuggets on what made him successful as a businessman.”
Johnson then asked Buss for the names of 50 CEOs and presidents who were Lakers’ season ticket holders and invited them to lunch. All 50 showed up, six became mentors, and six continue to work with Johnson’s businesses today.
Johnson stressed that it’s important to find mentors who will hold you accountable.
“Accountability is really important,” said Johnson. “You need somebody who can say, ‘Where are you with your plan? Are you taking the proper steps to get to the end game?’ So thank God I had so many people that I asked to hold me accountable.”
He also believes it’s highly beneficial to do a self-evaluation or SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) on yourself. Johnson said, “I do that not only for my business as a CEO, but for myself as a man, a husband, and a father because I want to get better in all areas.”
Other career and entrepreneurial advice included setting three-year goals and having any business plan backed by “numbers.” He stressed the importance of aligning yourself with people who share your vision and communicating that vision across the organization. Johnson said, “It’s really important that we’re all on the same page.”
Johnson touted the value of giving back, including becoming a mentor. Speaking on the Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday, he noted how the civil rights leader created the opportunities for him to find success.
“There was somebody who helped us all to get to where we are today,” said Johnson. “So, we’ve got to reach back and help others achieve their goals and dreams.”
For young people, he advised being open to criticism that may prove beneficial while also cautioning that success takes effort.
“It’s hard to become number one but even harder to stay number one,” said Johnson. “I learned that in sports. It was hard to beat the Celtics, and it was even harder after we beat them to be champions again. So young people, it is not easy. Nobody’s going to hand it to you.”
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Discussion Questions
What advice would you have around finding mentors as well as acting as one? What other career and entrepreneurial advice offered by Magic Johnson stood out as insightful to you?
Poll
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I particularly like the advice on aligning with people who share the same vision and then communicating that vision effectively. The best companies, including retailers, have a vision or view of themselves and where they want to go. If you can embed this among others in the organization, it is a powerful tool that creates purpose and drive that should inform day-to-day decision making and management. Sadly, too few companies have this.
Mentorship on both the giving and receiving end of the relationships is invaluable for all of those adventures on the open sea of the career journey. Ideally there needs to be some chemistry/mutual respect in order for the mentor/mentee relationships to fully flourish. While some mentorships happen naturally over time, the ability to “speed date” to find the best fit for a new employee would be more effective than an assignment to a mentor as someone joins a company. A guide is not the same as a mentor.
Great advice from Magic Johnson. The most important part of finding a mentor is the ask. People have to want to be mentored, and many don’t. They think they’ve been sufficiently trained. They are blind to their blind spots. They don’t know what they don’t know. I finally recognize that I always should have been in learning mode, and would have benefited from formal mentoring. I am reeeaaallly lucky that I had several great bosses and compatriots who were mentoring me along the way, whether I knew it or not.
I have mentored numerous people in my long career, and it’s just as fulfilling for the mentor as it is for the mentee. It’s a delight to see younger professionals come into their own and and make some noise.
In my experience (8 + years of mentoring High School students from a local College Preparatory HS) a mentor needs to be authentic, and genuinely want to help. Students and early stage workers will quickly figure out if a mentor is in it for the purpose of saying they are a mentor. Being a mentor is very much a “pay it forward” activity, and if that resonates with you, then you will probably be a good one.
Magic’s advice is outstanding and spot-on. I particularly like his commentary about striving to become #1. It’s hard. It takes enormous effort, focus and discipline to get to the top, and it’s even harder to stay on top. For young people just starting their careers, this advice is so relevant, so important. If you’re just starting out or midway through your career and haven’t found a mentor, go seek one. You’ll find it to be one of the best investments of time and energy you can make.
Finding and becoming a mentor to others are important aspects of a healthy career. With the amount of change in business no one knows it all and there are opportunities for everyone to be mentored in some area.
But, finding a mentor may take work. If you have someone in your personal or business life that you admire as a leader, ask that person for a networking contact that fits your particular need. As in every business meeting, have focused intention and prepare for your meetings with your mentors. It may also be a smart idea to prepare by reading a few books on the topic before you start like,” The One Minute Mentor’ by Ken Blanchard and Claire Diaz-Ortiz.
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I particularly like the advice on aligning with people who share the same vision and then communicating that vision effectively. The best companies, including retailers, have a vision or view of themselves and where they want to go. If you can embed this among others in the organization, it is a powerful tool that creates purpose and drive that should inform day-to-day decision making and management. Sadly, too few companies have this.
Mentorship on both the giving and receiving end of the relationships is invaluable for all of those adventures on the open sea of the career journey. Ideally there needs to be some chemistry/mutual respect in order for the mentor/mentee relationships to fully flourish. While some mentorships happen naturally over time, the ability to “speed date” to find the best fit for a new employee would be more effective than an assignment to a mentor as someone joins a company. A guide is not the same as a mentor.
Great advice from Magic Johnson. The most important part of finding a mentor is the ask. People have to want to be mentored, and many don’t. They think they’ve been sufficiently trained. They are blind to their blind spots. They don’t know what they don’t know. I finally recognize that I always should have been in learning mode, and would have benefited from formal mentoring. I am reeeaaallly lucky that I had several great bosses and compatriots who were mentoring me along the way, whether I knew it or not.
I have mentored numerous people in my long career, and it’s just as fulfilling for the mentor as it is for the mentee. It’s a delight to see younger professionals come into their own and and make some noise.
In my experience (8 + years of mentoring High School students from a local College Preparatory HS) a mentor needs to be authentic, and genuinely want to help. Students and early stage workers will quickly figure out if a mentor is in it for the purpose of saying they are a mentor. Being a mentor is very much a “pay it forward” activity, and if that resonates with you, then you will probably be a good one.
Magic’s advice is outstanding and spot-on. I particularly like his commentary about striving to become #1. It’s hard. It takes enormous effort, focus and discipline to get to the top, and it’s even harder to stay on top. For young people just starting their careers, this advice is so relevant, so important. If you’re just starting out or midway through your career and haven’t found a mentor, go seek one. You’ll find it to be one of the best investments of time and energy you can make.
Finding and becoming a mentor to others are important aspects of a healthy career. With the amount of change in business no one knows it all and there are opportunities for everyone to be mentored in some area.
But, finding a mentor may take work. If you have someone in your personal or business life that you admire as a leader, ask that person for a networking contact that fits your particular need. As in every business meeting, have focused intention and prepare for your meetings with your mentors. It may also be a smart idea to prepare by reading a few books on the topic before you start like,” The One Minute Mentor’ by Ken Blanchard and Claire Diaz-Ortiz.