What is a Business Mentor?
A business mentor is a person who can influence you and your business in a positive way.
A mentor is an experienced, skilled individual who can advise, guide and facilitate learning and development by building trust and modelling positive behaviours.
A business mentor will help you recognise your talents, set goals for your company and see the areas in which you can and should improve.
An effective mentor understands that their role is to be reliable, close, committed and authentic, and in tune with your needs.
What can a Business Mentor do for you?
A business mentor is a person with whom you can talk about “what is working” and “what isn’t working” in your venture or business.
They will guide you and help you find ways to improve, based on your knowledge, experience and contacts. This will give you a new vision of the situation, making you focus on what is really important.
After you have set goals and established a strategy that will take you where you want to go, your mentor will be the one who will make you responsible for meeting these goals.
| A Business Mentor Will: |
|---|
| Share their experience with you |
| Help you reach your full potential |
| Encourage progress |
| Act as a role model |
| Help you to forge a newfound responsibility |
| Introduce you to new contacts |
| Will always support you, wherever you are |
| Will be honest with you |
| Will expand your horizons |
How to recognise a good Mentor?
There are many different kinds of mentors for all walks of life. Sports mentors, spiritual mentors, mentors to strengthen your wellbeing, entrepreneurial mentors, etc.
They may be positioned in different specialisms, but they should each share certain traits and qualities.
| A Good Business Mentor Should: |
|---|
| Have extensive experience in the sector |
| Have results that are palpable and can be checked |
| Understand what knowledge and experience are necessary for your project |
| Know how to convey ideas and concepts easily |
| Be a born motivator, and a leader whom you can come to admire |
| Have a defined strategy, system and work plan |
| Be a born researcher |
| Like to explore, contribute or exchange ideas |
| Have enough time to share progress along the way |
| Not be moved by personal gain, but a burning desire to help |
| Be direct, authentic, optimistic, and knows how to listen |
| Guide and not control |
Nordens Business Coaching
Our strategic Business coaching offers a tailored service to each client
- Vision & Financial Strategies
- Financial Transformation Planning
- Strategic Overview Perspective
- Management Issue Solutions
- Enhancement of Competitive Advantages
- Branding & Marketing Strategies
Where to find a mentor?
Below is a list of possible ways and places to find a business mentor.
1. Social networks
You can find mentors by looking for them on social networks, especially through platforms like Twitter or professionals on LinkedIn.
With keyword searches, you can find professionals who match the search for the type of mentoring you are looking for.
Having a direct conversation to ask someone to be your mentor is usually ineffective.
Ideally, call the attention of the potential mentor by commenting on their blog, participating in their online community, interviewing them, sponsoring their podcast or even sending them a gift card.
Try to think outside the box to gain attention.
2. Networking events
If you prefer to find a mentor by talking face to face with them, there is always the possibility of attending networking events.
Networking can make you contacts that last a lifetime.
In these events, people always look for new contacts, either because they are looking for customers, employees or potential partners for the future.
At networking events you can meet professionals in different areas and expand your network of personal contacts, even finding a suitable mentor to undertake your project.
3. Local Meetups
Where to find a mentor? A meetup is a good place to find a mentor for entrepreneurs.
Meetups are free and quite informal encounters between people related by a theme. Unlike networking events, a meetup gives you the possibility to talk with the organisers.
The organisers are usually people willing to help – since many organise meetups on a voluntary basis and are specialists in the subject of their meetup group.
If you are looking for mentors in a subject of your specialty, for example digital marketing, online business, SEO, etc., a good idea is to look for a close meetup on those topics.
An even better idea is to try to organise a meetup yourself, along with other experts who could become friends and mentors.
4. Volunteering in events
Similar to the previous two, collaborating as a volunteer in an event is another good way to meet professionals and entrepreneurs who could be the mentors you are looking for.
Every event related to your work area is a good opportunity to find a mentor.
Many of these events would be delighted to have volunteers who collaborate with the many tasks to be performed.
Once you begin to attend constantly, you will meet the usual organisers and assistants who could become your mentors as well.
5. Incubators or business accelerators
Business incubators or accelerators are public or private organisations that provide resources, experience and advice to entrepreneurs in some of the biggest cities in the world.
There are two ways to take advantage of these places to find a mentor:
1. Sign up to start a mentoring program or
2. Participate as a volunteer
The latter method means you can establish direct contact with many professionals in your area.
Some of them could become the mentor to undertake what you are looking for.
6. Local civil associations
Do you belong to a professional association? Well, if this is the case, then it should be one of the first places you look to find a mentor.
Try and connect with somebody who isn’t already a competitor in your market. Someone who has achieved the kind of success that you’re aiming for.
In every city and country there are nonprofit civil associations, where people meet regularly for the same common issues.
Similar to meetups, associations usually have management bodies, president, formal members, etc. They are usually professionals or business-people with experience.
Joining and actively participating in a local association will allow you to meet new people with more experience than yourself. This is another perfect place to find a business mentor or to undertake any type of project.
7. Co-Working Spaces
Do you live in a city with an entrepreneurial culture and lots of startups?
You could probably find on Google the typical place where entrepreneurs work or at least frequent: a coworking space.
Coworking is a shared work space with three main objectives:
1. Get the job done
2. Independently work in a relaxed environment and
3. Meet people to create business or work contact networks
Coworking is a very good place to find a mentor to start a business or project.
If there is no coworking where you live, then be sure to visit these workplaces in search of new experiences and contacts, whenever you travel.
Nordens Can Help
Finding a business mentor doesn’t need to be a mission impossible. Nowadays, there are all kinds of different avenues to seek the best person possible for your business.
With more and more meetups, conventions, networking groups, coworking spaces and associations – the time is right now to find your business mentor and make a difference.
Alternatively, let the specialists at Nordens do all the hard work for you…
With our contacts and expertise, we can find the right match for your business and strategically gudide you to higher success.
Get in touch today to see how we can help.
Nordens Business Coaching
Our strategic Business coaching offers a tailored service to each client
