By Lizanne Falsetto
When I first started thinkThin, I was my business. My business was me. Period. I would roll out of bed and commute to my old computer in front of my bed. Then I’d commute to the kitchen to try out new recipes. That was thinkThin.
I didn’t have a mentor. The World Wide Web didn’t yet match its claim. If I needed to learn about some new aspect of doing business, I read about it in a book or hired a consultant for a “Harvard-at-home” session in my living room. This was how I learned about food distribution channels, MCBs (merchandise charge backs), and broker management.
Whenever I failed at something, I picked myself up and tried again (and again) until I got it right. A noble path?
Well, thinkThin was built from 20 struggling years of this trial-and-error method. I did finally arrive and am proud of myself for doing so. But, with all the accumulated knowledge out there, the easy access to it, and the multitude of people who have gone before you, there is no reason it has to take you twenty years. Why not let a mentor shave off about fifteen of those years for you?
Googling for Dollars
I hear a lot of millennials say, “Who needs a mentor? My mentor is the Internet.” It’s true that you can read online about everything under the sun. This is something to celebrate. The problem is that the interactive Internet . . . isn’t. A machine can only go so far in interactivity. You read, you try it out . . . and sometimes it works. But other times it doesn’t, and your left wondering where you went wrong.
You were sure you followed the prescribed steps exactly; you were certain you replicated the model you read about. But that wonderful business blog you’ve been following and applying to your own startup, well, it doesn’t see you in action. It doesn’t witness your process. It doesn’t correct your mistakes as you’re making them.
Thank goodness there’s still a place for human contact in the learning experience. A real live human mentor will save you a lot of heartache, and a lot of time.
When You Fail, Fail Quick
There is nothing wrong with failing. In fact, failing is invaluable; it has been my biggest source of learning. But you also don’t want to fail slowly. You want to recognize as quickly as possible that you’re failing . . . and make a sharp turn to the right. That way, your invaluable lessons don’t have to be costly ones.
Again, here is where a mentor comes in. Your mentor—that person with multiple years more experience than you (and many more invaluable failures under her belt)—will help you recognize quickly when you’ve taken a wrong turn. She will help you correct your course rapido, saving you dollars, time, and possibly your reputation. Let a mentor speed up your failures, your learning curve, and your rise to the top.
Not Just Knowledge but Connections
“Find a distributor” is nowhere near as valuable as “Let me introduce you to my distributor.” A mentor worth her salt not only shares her knowledge, her invaluable lessons, and her advice–she also shares her database.
When you’re starting out, you likely have very few connections of your own. It’s not cheating to piggyback on the connections of a more experienced entrepreneur who believes in you. This is how good business is done. It’s all about connections.
If a mentor doesn’t offer to share his or her database . . . find another mentor.
There Are No Stupid Questions for Mentors
When you’re learning the ropes of a new business and working hard to get traction, there are two hurdles that many new entrepreneurs have trouble getting to the other side of:
- Knowing what questions to ask.
- Having the courage to ask them.
It’ll be a lot easier for you if you assume from the get-go that there are no wrong questions. If you ask a question that seems obvious to your mentor, he or she will rejoice in knowing and sharing the answer! (If your mentor laughs at your question, you haven’t got the right mentor.)
It takes courage to ask questions and it takes courage to request help. If you ignore these important steps, you are slowing your rise to success.
Why I Mentor
Why do I love to mentor new or struggling entrepreneurs? I believe that giving back completes the cycle of success. It’s not enough to rise to the top to then just sit on my laurels. I love helping others and I believe that the more I give the more I get. (And, frankly it’s just plain satisfying to help people succeed.)
The stories of success and failure of those who have gone before you will teach you a ginormous amount about business. And I love sharing my stories . . . because, guess what, I’ve got a lot of them. I failed a lot, I learned from it each time, I picked myself up, and went for it again. And every one of those experiences holds an important lesson that I—and other mentors out there—are thrilled to share with you.
Besides, I learn a lot from the fresh perspective of the young people I mentor. It’s a symbiotic relationship.
Reinventing the Wheel?
The good news is that with the current environment of easy access to knowledge, the trend of entrepreneurs sharing office space and whiteboard sessions, and the abundance of mentors chomping at the bit to help you rise to the top, you will not need to fail as often as my generation did. You’re in the lucky generation where support and resources are multiplying by the minute.
But you have to let us know you’re out there. Take a hard look at your business and find it in yourself to say, “Hey, over here. I need a hand up!”
The post Millennials Starting Businesses–Why You Need a Mentor appeared first on AllBusiness.com
The post Millennials Starting Businesses–Why You Need a Mentor appeared first on AllBusiness.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment