Finding a business mentor

[grand]

Hi everyone, my name is Ben.

I recently realized that a business/life mentor would serve as a great catalyst to my success as an entrepreneur and have now set out to find one. Actually, I genuinely believe pretty much all young entrepreneurs can greatly benefit from a business mentor.

A business mentor would generally be an experienced and successful entrepreneur who's genuine goal it is to see you and your business succeed. With their years of business experience, knowledge of a particular industry, and resources/contacts, they really help put the entrepreneur and the company into the right direction. Many mistakes and pitfalls that young entrepreneurs face in starting up companies for the first time can be prevented with the experience and knowledge of a business mentor.

But, as i'm sure you realize, finding a business mentor is definitely not a simple and straight forward task. A mentor must genuinely care about the success and growth of you and your company and such a person can be very hard to come accross. BUT I truly believe that if you are driven, your intentions are right, and you've got a solid set of values, finding one is inevitable.

Now based off of advice from others, I know a business mentor should be someone that you have an established relationship with and someone you can work well with. It could be very likely that you, as I, do not have such a person to resort to. In this case, finding a business mentor should be a longer term goal.

Some ideas I have for finding a mentor, and am implenting myself are the following:

-set criteria for the kind of business mentor you are looking for. For example, i am looking for a very successful semi-retired/retired entrepreneur in the consumer goods industry who may also be an angel investor. It's very specific, but i it provides greater focus and direction.

-compile a list of people who you can see as potential candidates then determine how you can further develop a relationship with them

-determine what types of organizations, associations, forums, etc. potential business mentors would be involved with and plan to join them, attend meetings, and get involved yourself. Develop friendships/relationships with these indviduals and make a good name for your self within the organization, assoc, forum etc.

-don't be shy, let it be known that your in search for a mentor and network with as many people as possible.

Any advice and direction you can provide us with in finding one would be greatly appreciated. Also, please feel free to disagree with anything i have mentioned, I am always open to constructive criticism.

[akula]

sure, i can field this question
u still here?

[grand]

Akula, YES i am!! I'm all ears!

[BusinessAdviser]

I'm an extremely motivated and goal oriented individual and i've joined this site in hopes to meet others with the same qualities. I'm all about efficiency and don't believe in the 9-5p work schedule. I believe in working minimal hourse while generating the highest output. Working in teams is the best way to do this, and i'm hoping to find some "team members" through this site. Don't get me wrong though, I do believe that it takes hard work and dedication to accomplish any major success.

Ben,

I wish you luck in both your search for a mentor and your business venture. I did just want to make one point. It's great that you're "all about efficienty" and "in working minimal hours while generating the highest output." Also, you're quite correct in your belief "that it takes hard work and dedication to accomplish any major success." However, understand that you'll only accomplish major success if, when you said that you "don't believe in the 9-5p work schedule," you meant that you are committed to working many more hours than the typical 9-5. If you're just looking to work a few hours a week and make millions, good luck, big guy. I suggest that you realize that you're going to have to bust your ass if you want to reach success. Hopefully, down the road someday, you'll be able to live comfortably while working a few hours a week, but you're going to have to work considerably more than a "9-5 work schedule" before that day comes, so you better start believing.

[mtyide]

Couldn't agree more with you Jonathan. Putting more effort into your work and making cutting sacrifices does lead to glory. It is just a matter of finding the right people to guide and nurture your career. I have been there through my tertairy education and worked extremely hard (series of 18 hours flat chasing a dream). I am trully glad of my achievements to-date at this early age and also dearly love to be mentored.

I believe young talent needs to be nurtured to produce great visionaries like you. I want people like you in my team, only God knows where to find them. I remember asking my friends about starting a business and they all vanished (spotted one laughing/giggling) and I was left looking at the ceiling counting dirt marks. Today? They all take me seriously and I believe I took a right decision to tackling my own visions and ideas turning them into real business. I am still growing and eager to learn...

To any young individual out there, still in tertiary (school) or just started, it is all about hard work no shortcuts really. I have seen it all: "To be the best you need to be amongst the best and learn from the best and for you to achieve that, you got to believe" - Yandisa Mtyide, 2007. I see great future for all of us who work tirelessly hard and making sacrifices while others enjoy luxury earned cheap lives from their parents riches. It is so sweet to realize that your hard work has finally paid off.

Let us have it all YE's, come now...

[grand]

Ben,

I wish you luck in both your search for a mentor and your business venture. I did just want to make one point. It's great that you're "all about efficienty" and "in working minimal hours while generating the highest output." Also, you're quite correct in your belief "that it takes hard work and dedication to accomplish any major success." However, understand that you'll only accomplish major success if, when you said that you "don't believe in the 9-5p work schedule," you meant that you are committed to working many more hours than the typical 9-5. If you're just looking to work a few hours a week and make millions, good luck, big guy. I suggest that you realize that you're going to have to bust your ass if you want to reach success. Hopefully, down the road someday, you'll be able to live comfortably while working a few hours a week, but you're going to have to work considerably more than a "9-5 work schedule" before that day comes, so you better start believing.

Jonathan, thank you for your comments. I couldn’t agree with you more about having to work your butt off and making sacrifices to become successful. I do it on a daily basis and I can understand how you misinterpreted what I said to seem otherwise.

The problem I have with the “9-5” work schedule is that I believe it creates the misconception that there is always work to be done between 9-5 or there is no work to be done after 5. The reality is that some days demand more work than others when working towards success…some days demand less.

I know “working minimal hours for while generating the highest output” sounds like I don’t believe in working longer hours, but that is not the case at all. I am currently working far more than 40 hours a week. I simply mean that I believe in being as effective and efficient as possible in everything that I do…I am a firm believer and follower of the 80/20 rule. Ultimately, yes, my LONG-term goal is to work a few hours a day while generating a good income…but that is not at all where I intend on being any time soon…I love what I am doing right now far too much.

I understand that obtaining true success takes a LOT of time.

[akula]

Any advice and direction you can provide us with in finding one would be greatly appreciated.

ok...yes, mentors are very important. no, it's not easy to get a firm commitment from a mentor. but, yes, there is a secret for how to pitch for mentorship.

essentially, the problem with finding a mentor (after having identified a suitable person) is having a lack of material things that you can offer in return for mentorship. in that sense, (after you compare the alternatives) there is only one valuable thing that founders can offer a mentor and expect to get interest.

that one thing is the opportunity for the mentor to leave a legacy in the business world through their mentee. in other words, a suitable mentor is typically someone who works in the same/similar industry as you are, and is at a stage in their career where they've sold their business and are now pursuing other interests. being in this situation, the entrepreneur often feels the need to crystalise and pass down all the things they've learned over the years in that particular industry - lest, time erodes their memory and all that knowledge is lost..and when you're gonna be at that stage of your career, you too will also seek out opportunity to leave your legacy...which could be in the form of a book, an endowment or a mentee etc

so...from a mentee perspective, that's the service that you have to be able to offer - a structured approach to helping a sucessful entrepreneur to be remembered...i'll leave it to you to figure out what that means, and note that in my experience, if the nature of your relationship deviates from this fundamental tenet (i.e. the role of the apprentice) - things will start to change and disintegrate.

[paul2145r]

I wrote a blog not too long ago on this topic. I'll attach a couple of excerpts to this post, but take a look at the blog if you're so inclined!

"...The role of the mentor is an important one, but the importance of the figure is often misunderstood. Many entrepreneurs (especially young ones) seek mentors, but some go too far. While seeking a mentor may help in the the beginning stages of a venture, I don't believe that having a mentor is a requirement for success..."

"...If a sense of independence is not fostered within the first 2-3 years of an entrepreneur's start, then they become constantly dependent on the advice and guidance of others. Ever wonder what the difference was between an Entrepreneur and a Board-led corporate executive? ..."

[grand]

akula, GREAT advice! It totally makes sense to take on such a mindset. I kind of understood that before, but you definitely solidified it for me. THANK YOU!

Paul, I will be sure to check out your blog. Thanks!

[DPayne]

My brother-in-law who is my business mentor in a sense has described the 9-5 workweek situation perfectly when talking about retiring at a significantly earlier age than everyone else. "If you want to cram 40 years of work into 20, you're going to have to bust your ass and work twice as hard. It is more than the average Joe can handle. If you want to marry the hot girlfriend, drive the porsche, and live on passive income, you have no options but to quit thinking and start busting your ass everyday. Be up at 6am and down at 10pm. This will be life reinventing bootcamp"

He sent me that in an email one day, and I read it from time to time as my motivation. It may seem a little harsh, but it whips me into shape. My 'why' is not money, my 'why' is a free lifestyle and the ability to financially help others.

However, do note that working 10 hours FOR YOURSELF is A LOT easier than 8 hours for someone else. Atleast for me it is.

[windysim]

having someone as a business mentor is great.after my graduation(got a business degree)
i had my first venture into business(a family business) and it did helped my way through the business world.
thank you papa!

[SRichey]

Ben, if you've had trouble finding a mentor try using SCORE. These are mostly retired successful entrepreneurs who are looking to help young people get started. Check it out, see what you think.

[Franakapan]

The book 'The Beermat Entrepreneur' by Mike Southan and Chris West has a great chapter on looking for a mentor.

[jwilson1]

In this day and age a mentor or coach is imperative. If I am going to walk through a mine field I certainly would prefer to walk behind someone, in someone else's successful footsteps.

There are many many business coaches around. If interested get back to me, and I will give you my thoughts on the different coaches and coaching firms.

I applaud you either way, in making the decision to find someone to help you. Unfortunately a lot of people would rather 'figure it out' for themselves.

[Ju3561]

Don't know where you live, but if you're in, or can get to the UK, you could check out the "Dragons Den", it has website of the same name - you may know of it already?