The Seven Questions Mentorship Method
Turn access to an expert into a focused, actionable learning session
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Time to result
- ~days to results
- Steps
- 5
- Confidence
- 96%
The Seven Questions Mentorship Method turns a meeting with an expert into a bounded learning session. Start with one concrete outcome, such as learning how to enter professional speaking. Research how the mentor achieved that outcome, then write exactly seven questions that expose the process, structure, starting point, delivery details, and likely mistakes. The limit forces prioritization and signals respect for the mentor's time. During the meeting, ask permission to take notes and capture practical details rather than relying on inspiration alone. The output is not simply advice: it is a usable breakdown of what to do first and how the craft works. Jeezy credits John Maxwell with the seven-question constraint and reused it with Maxwell and Robin Sharma.
Origin
Jeezy learned the approach from John Maxwell, then used it with Maxwell and Robin Sharma to explore transitions into entrepreneurship and speaking.
Core principles
- 01Earn useful answers by arriving prepared
- 02Constrain the conversation to create focus
- 03Ask practitioners about their actual process
- 04Turn expert answers into specific next actions
How to run it
- 1
Choose one outcome
Name the decision, transition, or skill you need help with. Keep it narrow enough that one expert can materially advance it.
Pro tip Phrase the outcome as something you can act on immediately after the meeting.
Watch out Do not use rare access to ask for general life advice.
- 2
Study the practitioner
Review the expert's path and identify where their experience overlaps your goal. Look for process gaps that public material does not answer.
Pro tip Ask about choices and operating details, not facts available in a biography.
- 3
Write seven strong questions
Select exactly seven questions and order them so each answer prepares the next. Cover the starting point, structure, execution, and common failure modes.
Pro tip Delete any question whose answer will not change what you do.
Watch out More questions can reduce depth and make the conversation feel extractive.
- 4
Run the focused conversation
State that you have seven questions, ask permission to take notes, and listen closely enough to pursue useful detail without abandoning the structure.
Pro tip Let the expert draw, write, or demonstrate when that communicates the process better than speech.
- 5
Convert answers into action
Turn the notes into a sequence of next steps, including where to begin and what to practise. Apply the advice before requesting another session.
Pro tip Send a concise update later showing what you implemented.
Watch out Collecting answers without acting on them turns preparation into procrastination.
In the wild
Jeezy travelled alone to Robin Sharma's home in Tuscany with seven prepared questions about speaking. Sharma broke down how speaking is structured, where Jeezy should start, how to use punchlines, stage posture, audience participation, and entrances. The focused format became detailed enough that Sharma took the pad and began writing his own answers.
→ Jeezy left with a practical breakdown of the speaking craft rather than broad encouragement.
A first-time product lead asks an experienced operator seven researched questions about running a launch review: what evidence to bring, who decides, what objections matter, how risks are recorded, and what happens after a no-go decision. The lead converts the answers into a meeting template and tests it on the next launch.
→ A short mentor meeting produces an immediately testable operating process.
Common mistakes
Arriving without a clear ask
Making the mentor discover your problem wastes the highest-value part of the meeting and usually produces generic advice.
Using seven shallow questions
The number creates discipline only when research has made each question consequential.
Treating notes as the outcome
The method succeeds only when the answers become decisions, practice, or a concrete starting plan.
Is it for you?
Best for
People who have brief access to an experienced practitioner while learning a skill or navigating a transition.
Not ideal for
Casual relationship-building conversations where a formal agenda would inhibit trust.
From the transcript
“same thing with John Maxwell. You know what I'm saying? It was seven questions and he loved that. You know, actually I got that from…”
“Seven questions and they better be good.”
“intentional and you're not rambling”
From the episode
Episode 491: Jay "Jeezy" Jenkins: The $4M Bet That Built an Empire + His 7-Question Mentor Method
Jay "Jeezy" Jenkins