As a startup owner, you need a mentor to help you overcome the many challenges you are sure to face when running your business. These challenges include coming up with a good business idea, business plan, or product to name a few. And these challenges are despite you not having started the business yet. Once it is up and running, more crop up.
But with a mentor by your side, you increase your chances not only of overcoming any hurdles in your path but also of succeeding despite them. A mentor’s perspective, tough questions, contacts, experience, and words of motivation all keep you grounded and focused. Let us look at each of these benefits in detail.
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1) Mentors Offer a Different Perspective
You cannot cover all your bases when you launch a startup. Like it or not, some important details will escape your eye. What you need, therefore, is someone to hold a mirror to your business. And, not just anyone off the street. Instead, it should be someone who possesses a combination of the right business experience and, more importantly, an objective eye.
As a result of this combination, this person sees the true state of your business or business plans. And with this insight, he or she can point out your startup’s strengths and weaknesses as well as the direction you should take.
2) They Ask Tough Questions
Once your startup is up and running, a mentor evaluates your progress and asks tough questions. The questions could be about your business model, delivery times, or future plans to name a few. Regardless of what they are about, the questions are not meant to rattle you.
Instead, they put you on the spot, and force you to take a step back and re-examine your business strategy. And by doing so, you stop being complacent, where you think all is well when it is not.
3) They Share Their Experience
If you’re familiar with Tai Lopez, you may already know that he stresses the importance of gathering knowledge. While it has become somewhat of a meme, knowledge is the single most important resource any budding business owner can have.
Mentors do more than give you a second opinion or put you on the spot with tough questions. They also share their value system, work ethic, and business experience with you. You then learn from it and incorporate it in your business. This beats having to learn the ropes the hard way through the trial-and-error method.
Although it eventually gets you to your desired goal, this method is long, frustrating, and tedious. In fact, few entrepreneurs survive it, and most give up on their startups after trying and failing too many times. In contrast, learning from a mentor’s experience not only fast-tracks your progress but also increases your chances of success.
4) They Open Doors
Besides sharing their work ethic, experience, and value system with you, mentors also open doors for you. They put you in contact with their many professional contacts, such as industry experts, business leaders, and even potential employees.
5) They Motivate You
When things go wrong, a mentor steps in and stops you from feeling sorry for yourself or, worse, giving up. Also, they share their experiences with failure and offer valuable tips on how to get back on your feet.
Conclusion
As a startup owner, mentors first offer you a second more objective opinion on the state of your business. This gives you an idea on the areas you need to improve. Mentors also ask you tough questions that force you to re-examine how you are running your startup.In addition, mentors share their value systems, work ethic, and work experience with you for you to learn from. Finally, you get access to their many professional contacts that help you to build your business.
© Suhail Ajmal for Web Gazette, 2017. |
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