Entrepreneurs that are mentored by business titans are 3 times more likely to become business titans themselves overtime. Prominent examples are Mark Zuckerberg (Founder of Facebook) and Larry Page and Sergey Brin (Founders of Google) who were mentored by Steve Jobs and Eric Schmidt respectively. The astronomical success they’ve had in the business world can be attributable to the mentorship they’ve received.
According to market research done by Jupiter Business Mentors, they found out that 93% of young entrepreneurs felt the need to engage with mentors who spent a great amount of time in the business world either as entrepreneurs themselves or business executives and strategists. Meanwhile, 80% of mentored businesses have had long term success and growth while also doubling their survival rate as compared to non-mentored businesses.
Benefits of having a mentor:
1. Mentors provide decade strong and solid principles while being cognizant of the new techniques you might have in your business. The new generation of entrepreneurs have definitely made a statement about the way they want to do business in their own way. Look at the way co-working spaces and collaborative working styles have trumped old bureaucratic and rigid systems. No matter how things evolve, there are certain constants that are prerequisites to success. Reaching out to a mentor who can pull out classic business principles that have been the ingredients of their success might give you solid grounding in your business while still being as dynamic as possible.
2. A mentor keeps you accountable to your business goals: Thomas Edison once spoke about those who have done great things in the world by saying: Genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration. This goes for the business titans you may admire. They may have been gifted intellectually or creatively, but to have built lasting global organizations required accountability to their vision and company. When you don’t have a mentor and you write down your business goals and put your notebook back inside the bedside cupboard, you can easily miss your deadlines because you have no one to give feedback to anyway. But when you have a mentor who has proven to be accountable to the standard they’ve set for themselves, they will require the same commitment from you too.
3. A mentor helps you build your business network: Their network pool becomes your network pool. Your mentor would have absolutely nothing to lose from inviting you to a business fair where you might just land your first big client or get inspired to make your vision a reality.
Initially, it may be difficult to scout the market for a mentor, but if you can’t get access to a close, phone call away type of mentor, start with the far but near mentors on the internet. There are a plethora of Ted Talks and videos on YouTube of entrepreneurs such as Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates, Ray Dalio, Aliko Dangote and many others, sharing their stories and journeys to success. If you’re an avid reader, buy as many books as you can be written by your favourite entrepreneurs. Even during COVID-19, it is possible to send emails to the people you look up to asking them to mentor you by having weekly sessions over Zoom (subject to their availability of course).
The journey of entrepreneurship is filled with highs and lows that shouldn’t be endured alone. A mentor who is willing to share their knowledge, support you and at times force you to aim higher and see yourself correctly is invaluable.
If you are looking for an experiened serial entrepreneur as your mentor book your Mentorship Programme here: https://www.fundingconnection.co.za/coaching-mentoring
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