Every entrepreneur wants to be successful. If you could find a way to boost your chances of success, and provide support for yourself at the same time, would you do it? Of course you would! That tool is a business mentor – someone to guide you along your way to entrepreneurial success.
Why Do You Need a Mentor?
Working with a mentor instead of going it on your own means:
- You’ll make fewer mistakes than you would have normally.
- You’ll learn more from the mistakes that you do make, by having someone to give you constructive feedback.
Because of these factors, you’ll make progress much faster than you would without a mentor.
Another huge benefit of having a business mentor is accountability. Accountability means that someone is holding you responsible for your actions, and that someone is holding you to your goals. When you’re actively sharing your goals with another person, the chances of you actually starting on those goals and following through on them is much higher. If you don’t have a mentor with whom to share your goals, nobody will know if you don’t reach those goals or follow through – but the thought of having to go to your business mentor and say that you didn’t complete your goal can add enough motivation to push you past the finish line when you might not have finished otherwise.
Finding a Mentor
Finding a business mentor can be hard, especially if you’re a location independent entrepreneur or you work from a virtual office. Even so, there are several different ways you can go about finding your mentor.
Check out the local meetup group listings near you – these are usually posted on Meetup.com, or you can search on your favorite search engine for [city name] “entrepreneur support group” and see what results you get for your local area. Even if you don’t find one specific mentor to learn from, you can gain many of the same benefits by working closely with a group – the atmosphere will give you support, education, and the accountability that you need.
If you can’t find any meetup groups local to you, then start looking for online assistance. There are many forums based around every sort of entrepreneurial niche, so you’re likely to find several knowledgeable people in your industry from which to learn. There are other online communities aside from forums, as well.
Even if you can’t find a specific mentor to work one-on-one, you can start reading blogs about building a business, marketing, or specific aspects of your industry – you might end up with a business mentor with whom you don’t have a personal relationship, but that you still learn from on a regular basis.
In a few years, after you’ve been mentored and are running a successful business, don’t forget to return the favor by finding someone who needs business mentoring and help him or her. We all need help in the beginning, and by helping others, you will likely find you help yourself as well, by reinforcing what you’ve learned.
