Don’t Have a Mentor

Contents

1. What is a Mentor
2. Do I really need a Mentor
3. How to find a Mentor
4. Benefits of having a Mentor

1. What is a Mentor 

A Mentor is someone who will bring out the best in you.

They have vast knowledge, experience, skills, and resources that can guide and help you along the way to achieve what you want to accomplish.

Besides being knowledgeable of the field or niche that you are in, a mentor is also someone who teaches you genuinely and doesn’t see you as a competition.

A mentor is like an older brother or sister who guides you on your first baby steps without taking control of your pacing and actions. They let you walk on your own but look after you and catch you when you fall. A great mentor will also be proud of your progress and achievements without seeing you as a threat to their own success.

2. Do I really need a Mentor?

We need to learn first, then do, not do, then learn.

It’s very costly to do something that you are not fully aware of. It will cost you financially, emotionally, and physically not to mention the waste of time as well.

We learn from others since we are born. We learn in school; we learn from our job.

So, it’s only logical to learn from others when we start a business, right?

Having a successful mentor who traverses the journey that you want to do, knows the way already can teach you all the danger, blockage, pain, etc., that they have experienced and paid the price already.

So, you don’t have to experience all the negative things they have experienced.

The bottom line, it will save you money, time, and other resources if you learn from a successful mentor.

You can learn from their books, blogs, videos on YouTube, etc.

The best part is, there are many free things out there. You don’t have to pay to learn!

3. How to Find a Mentor

A. Know what you want to accomplish or learn?

Before getting a mentor, you should know what you want to accomplish or learn first. Your mentor will be teaching you the skills that are relevant to your goals, so it’s important that you’re on the same page.

Your mentor also has his or her own priorities, so it’s only ethical to respect his or her time by being specific and direct to the point.

If you want to learn the basics of putting up a business, tell them right away. If you want him or her to teach you how to earn a million within a year, discuss it as early as possible.

Whatever it is that you want to achieve in the short or long term, inform your mentor about it. That way, he or she can narrow down the knowledge, skills, and experiences that he or she will impart to you. Being open to your mentor about your intentions will save both your time and energy.

B. Find a Mentor and Establish a Professional Relationship

After you’ve determined what you want to accomplish in your business or career, it’s now time to find and contact your desired mentor.

According to experts, the ideal experience for mentors is ten years and above. Your mentor must have a decent track record of success and must be willing to assist newbies like you. Your mentor could be a former supervisor or a long-time employee of your company.

You can also find mentors in seminars, talks, and conferences. Some have their website or social media accounts. You can try watching their videos, reading their books, or listening to the testimonials of their former mentees. Maximize the use of the internet in finding and messaging your prospect.

After finding your mentor, establish a good business relationship with them. If they’re someone you’ve known for a while, continue your casual yet professional relationship with each other. If they’re someone you’ve known on the internet, try establishing rapport with them first before you jump into your intention.

It is important that you research your potential mentor so they can feel how eager and resourceful you are. Compliment them with their successes and tell them how much you like their perspectives and strategies in business.

C. Draft an email asking for a mentor

Email is a professional way of communicating with your mentor, so don’t take it for granted. If you’re ready to formally ask your prospect to become your mentor, draft an email that is polite but straightforward.

Greet them with their first name, and introduce yourself. State the reasons why you chose them to become your mentor and tell them your goals as well.

Next, invite them to lunch or whenever they might be available so you can discuss the details of the mentorship formally. Tell them how much time it would take so they can set an appointment and make time for you.

For the follow-up, don’t forget to provide your contact details, including your phone number, website, or Skype ID.

4. Benefits of Having a Mentor

A. Give you a Vision

A Mentor will help you know what exactly you want to achieve and how to achieve it.

One thing that a mentor can help you with is knowing your Vision. As a beginner, you will tend to have overwhelming ideas of what you want to achieve in your career or business. Because of idealism, you tend to have scattered perspectives of what you want in life, may it be in a personal, spiritual, or professional aspect.

When you have a mentor, they will help you specify the things that you want. They will guide you in searching and screening the opportunities associated with your business. This way, you won’t be a victim of fraudulent opportunities that might take advantage of beginners. Your mentor will help you come up with a data-driven decision.

They have been there, so they know what questions they need to ask you and how to determine the things that you want to happen in your life. Having a clear and compelling vision will lead you to a laser-focus effort that will help you succeed faster than everyone else.

B. Detailed advice or solution on a specific subject

Mentors are like teachers who will arouse your interest and curiosity on a certain subject then will facilitate you in discovering it on your own. Having a mentor whom you can ask for help or information in every aspect of your business is crucial. Their advice and strategy could be a life-changing solution to your business if you find the right mentor.

If you’re aiming to earn a million within a year, you won’t ask for help from a mediocre entrepreneur. You will go for someone who has actually earned millions in their business and apply the habits that they’ve done to get there. You will mimic their mindset as well to ensure that you’re thinking like a millionaire.

Looking for a real, knowledgeable mentor is worth your time, money, and energy, especially if you’re getting the advice and solutions that you need for your growing business. Establishing a consistent and professional relationship with a mentor may be high maintenance, but you will soon reap what you sow if you give it a try.

C. Set goals and how to achieve them

One thing that I’ve learned from having a mentor is setting your goals and writing them down. My mentors told me about the importance of writing down what you want, may it be short-term or long-term.

When you have a list of your goals, you get to imagine a clear pathway of the activities that you need to accomplish at a certain time. You will have your timeline, and you will be able to track the things that you have accomplished and have not.

I didn’t know that writing down your goals was important. When was the last time you wrote your goals? Do you have goals that you want to achieve or dreams that you want to come true? Have you realized them already?

If not yet, maybe you haven’t written them down. Please try to write it down, and you will see the power of writing your goals.

D. Provide resources that you can’t find on your own

When you’re starting a business, finding the right and legitimate resources could be a tedious job. It’s hard for a beginner to find and choose resources, especially if you don’t know the right keywords to use in searching on Google.

You have to conduct thorough research on your products to avoid being scammed. Yet, once you’ve found a bunch of information, it seems difficult to filter out which ones are factual or not. You don’t know if those sources are even credible.

Let’s say that you’re looking for suppliers on Alibaba or AliExpress for the products that you want to sell. There’s an overwhelming list of suppliers, and you don’t know which ones to choose, right? You also don’t know if the seller is legit or not or if the quality of their products is excellent. There is a lot of what-ifs that could flood your mind this time.

But, if you have a mentor, you will have an expert to ask for help. They will be able to give you immediate and reliable answers because they have been to the business that you want to pursue. They have analyzed those sellers before, and they know how to pinpoint the possible scammers as well.

E. Develop skills

I can attest to this benefit. Over the years, I have developed my skillset in various fields because of my mentors. I’ve learned skills related to entrepreneurship, web design, SEO, social media marketing, sales, and the like.

Due to the rampant sources out there– self-help books, YouTube video tutorials, and blog articles, people have overlooked the importance of having a mentor. Beginners are now choosing to study and improve their skills on their own because of the internet.

It is a harsh truth. A lot of people today fail to have personal or professional development because they don’t have a mentor. Please find a mentor in your life to grow.

There’s nothing wrong with browsing the internet for pieces of advice, but nothing will beat a human in giving you constructive criticisms and compliments. The actions and decisions related to your business need an expert to evaluate them.

F. Teach you how not to give up.

Your mentors will encourage you not to give up. Most of the people who told me not to give up were my mentors. I know that we have family, friends, and acquaintances who can boost our confidence and be proud of us. However, mentors hit differently.

Hearing an expert say that you’re doing well or give it one more try is a different type of boost. Since my mentors told me not to give up, I got used to it, and it’s become my habit of telling my friends not to give up, too. Your mentors’ lessons are contagious, and they can stay with you for the rest of your life.

G. Develop contacts

Having mentors will not only give you ideas about your business but also provide you with connections. Since your mentor has been in the industry for years, it’s more likely that they have known a lot of experts, trainers, businessmen, and entrepreneurs that you can turn to for help or resources.

They have known numerous suppliers and sellers that you may need in growing your business. Contacts and connections are necessary, especially if there’s a tight competition in your industry. Connections can give you powerful strategies to get ahead of your contemporaries in your target business.

H. Make better decisions

When you’re a beginner, you are not yet familiar with the steps and strategies that you have to do, right? You are prone to a lot of mistakes and shortcomings. If you have a mentor, they will help you decide on the proper things to do in every aspect of your business.

Your mentor has been there and done that, so they already know how to deal with unexpected problems that may arise. You will avoid many trial-and-errors if you get a mentor who can warn you about your possible mistakes and obstacles ahead of time.

I. It will serve as inspiration.

The world of entrepreneurship is complicated. There are unforeseen hindrances that may come along the way, and you might not be prepared for it.

There are a lot of entrepreneurs who don’t thrive and succeed because of the hindrances that they failed to overcome. That is why it’s vital to have inspiration during hard times so you can be reminded to keep going.

One proven solution is to have a mentor who can inspire you. When you have someone that you’re looking up to, you tend to look back at their achievements and use them as your fuel to continue. When you’re struggling and feel like giving up, your mentor’s life story will motivate you.

Mentors are also great in giving pieces of advice and encouraging you to fight all the way through. They will push you to your limits until you achieve your full potential in business.

Just like your older brother or sister, your mentor will watch you learn but won’t let you fail, they will criticize your mistakes but won’t belittle your skills, and they will scaffold your way to success without making you feel less of a person.

At the end of the day, having a mentor will push you to be a better person.

Tell me, do you have a mentor now? What steps will you take to have one?