The internet, peers, friends and even family – all of these sources provide a steady stream of industry news, updates, analysis, knowledge and advice.
While these sources can be a great starting point, this stream of information will only help to a certain extent. Online publications are typically generic, peers have their own personal set of problems and are often hesitant to get into the nitty-gritty details, and while friends and family may have the best intentions, they don’t always provide the best advice.
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That’s why every entrepreneur needs to find a business mentor. They pick up where these sources leave off and provide you with specialized knowledge, advice, and motivation based on personal experience and a thorough understanding of you and your business.
Only a personal business or startup mentor is able to contribute such profound guidance and support. In this article, we’ll take a look at:
- What is a Business Mentor
- What a business mentor does
- Why entrepreneurs specifically can benefit from mentorship
- What types of business mentoring programs are available
So let’s get to it!
What is a business mentor?
A business mentor is someone who provides advice, guidance, and support. This can be an informal or formal mentor relationship depending on your needs as an entrepreneur. It can take place face-to-face, over the phone, online, or in any combination of these formats.
Some mentoring services are free – the more casual type – and will be less structured and intensive. They usually take the form of a monthly phone call, weekly email check-in, or something along these lines.
On the other hand, a paid mentoring program will be much more structured and productive. There will be a systematic and methodical sequence that is specifically tailored to your career goals and personal needs. This is designed to help your business grow and flourish, as well as help you save time and money by implementing systems that will help your business run without your direct input into every aspect.
A business mentor has years of experience planning, starting and growing their own businesses. They’ve gone through their own share of trials and tribulations and have experienced their own mentorship programs throughout the years. Essentially, they’ve ‘been there, done that.‘
That’s why leveraging the insights of an entrepreneur mentor is invaluable to the success of your business and personal growth. They have learned from their own successes and failures. That, combined with their deep examination of your business enables them to provide personalized advice to help grow your business sustainably and successfully.
What a Business Mentor Does
A business mentor is going to help you and your business with the big ideas and challenges. Their purpose isn’t meant to assist you with the everyday small things and tasks. Your business mentor is going to offer overall guidance from experience for your business to succeed with a certain amount of specialization.
A great mentor will have these main qualities:
- Versatility
- Approachability
- Availability
- Experience
- Listening
- Eagerness
How Does a Business Coach Help an Entrepreneur?
Starting your own business is an ambitious and difficult undertaking. Entrepreneurs face a number of challenges that most other people have never gone through. That’s why it’s so valuable to have a startup or small business mentor – who’s already faced and overcome these challenges – on your side.
Entrepreneurs often get stuck working ridiculous hours, leaving them feeling stressed and overwhelmed which can lead to feelings of isolation and intense pressure. Business mentors help alleviate these pressures and remind you that there are others out there experiencing the same struggles – and that you can take active steps to free yourself from this “Self-Employment Trap.”
Here are 5 ways a business mentor can help an entrepreneur:
#1. Implement structure
Not only will your mentoring sessions be structured in a way that helps you grow as a leader, but each one will end with a to-do list that you and your startup mentor have come up with together that will help you focus on accomplishing the most important tasks.
#2. Provide an outside perspective
As a leader, it’s important to have someone to bounce ideas off, double-check your strategies, and be honest with you no matter what. A business mentor is unbiased and doesn’t have the emotional attachment to your project that you do. From an outside prospective, they often are able to see the bigger picture much easier, since they’re not directly involved.
As CEO, it can be difficult for your employees to be honest with you. They may be uncomfortable disagreeing with you or telling you when you’re in the wrong. Your business mentor will have no problem telling you when you’re wrong or encouraging you when you’re right.
#3. Hold you accountable
In addition to providing a perspective from outside the company, they will also hold you accountable in ways that your employees might not be able to. It can be a lot to ask someone who works for you to keep you in check…but a business mentor will gladly do it.
#4. Save you time and money
Business mentors have been through nearly every situation that you’ll find yourself in. They can help show you the results of different decisions and help you learn from their mistakes so that you don’t have to waste time, energy, and money that would be required to learn the hard way.
#5. Support you through difficult times
Starting and growing your own business requires you to make difficult decisions. You’ll go through a series of highs and lows, and need to hold yourself accountable for all the wins as well as losses.
This takes a mental toll on entrepreneurs. Having a great mentor will help provide perspective and motivation through the most difficult of times. They’ll also be there for you on the other side to celebrate your victories.
#6. Widen Your Network
When working with the right mentor for your business, they have the potential to unlock and widen your networking circle. They might be able to recommend contacts or certain networking events that they benefited from themselves. The contacts they provide is most likely going to be the perfect person to turn to for help based on their experience in a specific industry, or perhaps be able to fill a new role in the company. Overall, having a strong network list is important for your business’s success in the long run.
Find a business mentoring program
There are a number of different types of mentoring programs available to entrepreneurs. The mentorship program or potential mentor that will be most beneficial for you and your company will depend on your needs and learning style. Learn more about how to find a business mentor.
At Maui Mastermind, we help our clients build a large business that they can eventually sell, scale, or own passively by implementing sound systems, hiring and training a talented team, and strategically placing intelligent internal controls.
Our team of entrepreneur mentors and coaches have scaled and sold a combined $2 billion of businesses over the last 20 years. We’d love to help you grow your business and achieve financial and personal freedom by becoming a successful entrepreneur.
We offer all qualifying businesses a free 90-minute session in order for both sides to determine if this is going to be a good fit and mutually productive relationship. If you’re interested in our business mentoring program, click here.
Or if you’re not quite ready, please feel free to download our FREE Business Owner Toolkit – 36 Free Tools to help you grow your business and get your life back.