For a young entrepreneur, a close mentoring relationship is like having a big brother in the office. The big brother knows the ropes, has a large network of friends and is bigger than the bullies. There are countless benefits of having an experienced, fully engaged business mentor on your team. Here are a few of the highlights.
First of all, if you can find an experienced mentor in your field, then you'll gain access to that person's extensive network of contacts. Building an effective professional network is still one of the hardest parts of starting a new enterprise, even with social networking Web sites like LinkedIn. If you're looking for a vendor, supplier or investor, the mentor knows exactly who to call. And unlike you, his call will actually be returned. That's priceless.
If you can establish a trusting and mutually beneficial mentor relationship, your mentor will not only share his or her ideas, but also a long and valuable list of "lessons learned." Mistakes are a great way to learn, but some are so costly and time-consuming that it is best to let someone else do the "learning" for you. By analyzing your business plan and keeping track of your major upcoming decisions, a good mentor will help you steer clear of the biggest blunders.
A healthy mentor relationship is really an informal education. You can learn a lot in an MBA program, but there are some lessons that can only be gleaned from real-world experience. In an Inc. magazine article from 2000, a small-town businessman named Kent Sutherland described the unique mentoring relationship he shared with billionaire and Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton. Sutherland met Walton as a 23-year-old salesman peddling health-care products for a national supplier. Even though Sutherland never worked for Wal-Mart, CEO Walton took the young man under his ample wing. When Sutherland talks about the benefits of the relationship, he cherishes the nuggets of common sense wisdom -- like "always diversify" -- that helped him make a small fortune in unglamorous businesses like insurance, storage units and mortgage brokerages.
The best way to find a business mentor is to get out there and network. Start by combing through your connections on LinkedIn or searching the online alumni directory at your alma mater. You'll have a better chance of making a solid connection if you already have friends, colleagues or colleges in common. Local mentors are best, so consider joining the local chapter of the Rotary Club, Toastmasters International or Entrepreneurs' Organization. Attend some meetings, identify potential candidates, and start asking people out to lunch or coffee.
There are also national small business organizations designed to help connect entrepreneurs with resources and mentors. The National Association of Women Business Owners and the National Federation of Independent Business are good places to start. The U.S. Small Business Administration partners with a Web site called SCORE.org, which connects small business owners with online mentors. There are also regional SCORE offices across the country where you can seek out offline mentoring relationships.
What characteristics should you look for in a potential business mentor? First, your mentor needs to have experience with your exact business situation. If you are trying to raise venture capital for a tech start-up, find someone who's successfully funded and launched a profitable start-up (or six). The important thing is that your mentor has done what you want to do and gone where you want to go. Otherwise, you might get a lot of good general business advice, but nothing you can apply directly to your current situation.
Secondly, your mentor should have an established network of industry contacts. This is one of the greatest benefits of having a mentor -- instant access to a Rolodex of savvy investors, trustworthy vendors and potential partners. For this reason, a business mentor doesn't necessarily have to be older. It's his or her years of experience in your field that matter most.
Thirdly, your mentor should actually care about you. Your mentor needs to be someone who is deeply invested in your success; not financially, but intellectually and emotionally. If your mentor truly cares about your success, he or she will be more committed to regularly scheduled meetings, feedback and networking on your behalf. Of course, a crucial aspect of caring is honesty. The best mentor shouldn't be worried about hurting your feelings. Your mentor should tell it like it is, pointing out the weak parts of your business plan along with the strengths.
No comments:
Post a Comment