The first years in business can be challenging, especially for those starting a business for the first time. The early years of any business are a crucial make-or-break period, and business mentors can be vital to their success.
Many companies even end up going out of business, because they haven’t fully considered customer demand or the feasibility of their business models. It’s also so easy to get distracted and chase after every shiny new idea, so having the right people around you can serve to keep you grounded and focused. Learning from those who’ve already walked the path is an excellent way to avoid making costly mistakes.
One thing many successful entrepreneurs have in common is a close relationship with a mentor. The business world business is full of examples of experienced mentors working with promising individuals to realise their potential.
Around 92% of entrepreneurs also report that mentoring has a positive impact on the growth and survival of their business. Just five meetings with a mentor has shown to have a considerable impact on improving growth potential.
What are the benefits of having a business mentor?
- Helps you set realistic goals and holds you accountable to them: to keep moving the business forward, new goals need to be set. A mentor will initiate goal-setting, hold you accountable and celebrate the important milestones to help the business owners stay engaged and enthusiastic.
- They can provide unbiased views: and that’s a big differentiator between business mentoring and coaching. A business mentor will view your business with fresh, unbiased eyes and guide you, instead of solving problems for you.
- You will get an external perspective to support decision-making: A mentor will maintain a suitable distance from your company and will more easily be able to see pain points, as well as new opportunities and areas with room for improvement. A mentor can also approach your problems and questions without any emotional baggage, and help you to face some of the harder truths.
- You’ll learn from their mistakes & successes: A business mentor will have more entrepreneurial business experience than you, and can serve as a trusted confidante. One of the biggest benefits of finding a business mentor is that you can learn from their previous mistakes and successes. Your mentor doesn’t need to have experience in a particular industry nor do they have to be up on the latest trends or technology—you’ve got other sources for that. Your mentor’s role is to share lessons from their experience in the hope that you can learn them quickly and easily.
- They will motivate, encourage and challenge you to live beyond your potential: Business mentors are crucial for business success by helping the entrepreneur to maximise their potential and pass through the pivotal moments of their professional journey. They will be there consistently to keep motivated and accountable and ready to proactively solve any challenges.
- Can help solve problems with confidence: Business mentors can expand an entrepreneur’s viewpoint, helping them with multiple perspectives to solve problems and give confidence to deal with these proactively.
What is a business mentor?
A business mentor is someone with business experience who can act as a trusted confidante over an extended period of time with an objective to providing advice, guidance from a fresh perspective, problem solving, trusted collaboration and in addition holding business owners accountable to staying focused on their long-term goal of making their venture a success.
When is the right time to work with a mentor?
If you’re a business owner, then it’s never too early to start searching, even if you’re a start-up or an established business. But the right time is usually linked to an event or turning point or there is a decision to be made or a change about to happen, and the business owner needs some confidence to move forward quicker.
I am a registered business mentor for Local Enterprise Offices in Offaly, Laois, Tipperary and Wexford and lots of businesses are eligible for some complementary mentoring sessions.
If you are a business owner who would like to discuss Business Mentoring, book a Discovery Call here and we can also check if you are eligible for complementary mentoring from your Local Enterprise Office.
