No matter how old you are, how much experience you have in your locker or how well-prepared you think you are, there is always room to accept quality advice of other people.
Of course, you need to be selective of who you accept guidance off as you want to make sure it’s coming from a reliable and informative source.
So, how do you sort the bad from the good?
One of the best ways to ensure that any of the advice you choose to take is going to be beneficial for your small business is by enlisting the help of a mentor. A qualified – or just well-experienced – professional can become an invaluable extension to your team and here are the main reasons why:
They can give you niche support
One of the best things about working with a business mentor is that you can really hone in on the gaps in your own knowledge or experience. Maybe marketing is a mystery to you, or you just don’t understand the rules and regulations around human resources. Perhaps it’s finance and accounting where your skills are lacking.
Whatever it is, you can pinpoint your weaknesses precisely and seek out your support accordingly.
They provide access to industry insights
A great business mentor will be well-seasoned in the world of research, industry news and networking events. They will have had their ear close to the ground for many years so will be able to impart these insights in order to best educate your strategies and influence your targets and decisions.
They offer expert advice
Business mentors are likely to be somebody who has had years of first-hand experience in a particular field. This means they have most probably witnessed many of the troughs you’re trying to avoid and been successful in many of the peaks that you’re aiming to achieve. Let them use this expertise to guide your journey.
They come with a network of contacts
As well as knowledge, experience and insights, a business mentor will usually come with a network of contacts that you will be able to tap into through working with them. This means your mentor may be able to expose you to whole new audiences and opportunities that you might not otherwise come into contact with.
They can be a great sounding board
All of the above benefits in combination make a business mentor the perfect person to discuss your ideas and ambitions with. They will be able to advise what they think will work and what won’t, as well as being there to provide creative brainstorming sessions and influential idea-sharing.
A trained accountant could act as a great mentor if finances and bookkeeping are your weak points when it comes to running your business or launching a start-up.
