Colin Powell and other celebrities are calling on everyone to make a difference in a young person's life by becoming a mentor. January is National Mentoring Month, making this volunteer opportunity a great way to start off the New Year.

Research has shown that formal youth mentoring programs can promote positive outcomes, such as improved self-esteem, social skills and career development. Those positive outcomes go both ways. For parents of tweens, this is also a great way for your child to see you in a different and perhaps more positive light. As you begin working with another child, you may start to see your child in another light as well. Think of it as a win-win for everyone!

Encouragement and resources are available to get you started. "Mentors are building a brighter future for our Nation by helping our children grow into productive, engaged, and responsible adults," says President Barack Obama in a proclamation he released on Monday.

The National Mentoring Month web site offers a search engine that helps you find mentoring groups in your area. There are more than 3 dozen in my area. There are other good resources through National Mentoring including research with reasons to get going right away on your resolution to make a difference.

According to MENTOR, 17.6 million young Americans need or want mentoring, only 3 million are in formal, high-quality mentoring relationships. That means more than 14.6 million young people still need mentors. That unmet need constitutes what is becoming known as the "mentoring gap."

If you are considering mentoring a tween, check out the Search Institute resources that include these tips:

1. Tweens want to be listened to … and they usually don't feel like they are.
2. Tweens want to be supported when they make mistakes as well as recognized when they succeed.
3. Tweens want to learn about themselves and others.
4. Tweens want to be valued.
5. Tweens want to give something back to the community.

The first National Mentoring Month was held in January 2002. Since then the several groups including the Harvard Mentoring Project have developed this month-long outreach to demonstrate ways each of us can work together to assure that all young people develop their full potential.

Watch this video that features Colin Powell who says "When you serve as a mentor, you enrich your own life as much as you do the life of a child. Mentoring leads to new experiences, new connections, new insights, and new satisfactions. Expand your universe - mentor a child."

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