Getting a Mentor

Many people don't realize the benefits of a mentor. If you are starting a business or trying to grow it from small to large, the fastest way to accomplish is to have several people that you consult with that are more experienced than you. Ideally, one of those people should be incentivized to mentor you, either with stock or a small percentage of the business in exchange for helping guide you, based on his/hers more advanced knowledge and successful experience in the same business. The reason for this is that it is much slower when you have to learn every single step yourself. People that have been in the same business as you previously have gained a great deal of experience, perhaps made mistakes from which they have learned, and can help you avoid the costly errors that occur when you have to redo something, or have wasted months only to find that you are moving in the wrong direction.

In addition, if you are growing a company you will need leadership skills. A mentor, from their experience, should be in a better position to guide you in growing the team. Further, the mentor should help you prioritize so your effort and energy is spent on the most important aspect of growing your company. Together with the mentor you should determine which tasks can be delegated, and what skill sets are needed for the new employees you hire. Formal testing of any new employee should always be done. Including having them write a short essay as to why they want the job, what skill s they bring with them, what their educational background has been and anything else you feel will be of help when you are making a decision to hire them. Resumes and references should be reviewed with the mentor so that you make a joint decision on any new staff.

Cash expensed daily and weekly should be recorded by a good bookkeeper and reviewed with the mentor frequently. This way the mentor will see you are on the right track on the business or if you will run our of capital quickly.

As you can see, starting or expanding a business is no small undertaking and requires a lot of knowledge and judgment. Working with a good mentor is the fastest way.

Dr. Howard Marshall.