Site Search

Google

Links

Browse Articles

Highest Rated

Most Popular


Business > Management

How a Mentor can assist your Business

A dictionary suggests that a mentor is: A wise and trusted counselor or teacher, (dictionary.com/ c2006).

In business terms the description 'wise' translates into somebody who is experienced in running a successful business operation, and who is adept at passing on that knowledge. With over 65% of businesses failing in their first year of trading, the proposition would be that new business entrepreneurs should seek all the assistance the can get!

Selecting a Mentor.

So how does an aspiring business person find and select a mentor to assist them with the operation of their enterprise? A common starting place is within the family. Is there a relative who has proven business skills, and who has the time and desire to assist you? If so, all well and worthy - just be careful to choose a family member who has the integrity necessary to disagree with you and counsel you, when they perceive it to be important.

Secondly, look around your friends and their parents. Perhaps there's somebody in that group who can offer genuine assistance and advice from time to time.

Is your operation a franchise? If so, there may well be a mentoring program already set up internally to provide the exact type of assistance you're looking for.

Lastly try contacting you local chamber of commerce - a locally based group of business individuals who come together to discuss common issues or to lobby the government. Within this group there will likely be successful business operators who may be willing to give of their time and knowledge. You won't know till you ask.

What to Expect of a Mentor. A mentor is not a guardian angel sitting at your shoulder each and every day. Usually they will be a person who is active in their own enterprise and therefore simply not available all the time. The best expectation of a business mentor is somebody who can be consulted from time to time, when issues arise that are new or unknown to their prot'ge.

For example: Selecting the correct insurance policies Hiring quality staff Handling the first enormous customer The first enormous debt The first tax return

A lot of mentor/prot'ge relationships fail through over dependence on the mentor, and poor communication between the two. Put yourself in your mentors shoes, (it's likely that if you grow to race a successful operation that you'll be a mentor yourself before long), and visualize how you'd appreciate being 'used'.

In conclusion; it's a tough world out there in business, and you have a responsibility to yourself to maximize your chances of success. A final thought: Even the world's most experienced ship captains still gratefully use the services of a pilot to guide them into port.

http://www.business-cards.com is one of the leading business stationery websites on the internet today. For more business related articles please take a look at their journal at http://www.business-cards.com/business-cards-journal

Article Source: http://www.ArticleBiz.com

Rate This Article Rating Saved!
Add to Mixx!

Keywords:

business mentor time first operation


Related Articles:

Help Desk Software For Small Businesses
Tips On How To Make Sales Incentives Work For Your Business
What Is The Effect Of An Overdraft On The Balance Sheet
Can you handle a few tough questions
Business Competition How to Beat your Competition at Their Own Game
How to run a Staff Appraisal
Change Management In Practice Why Does Change Fail
Greed Is Good Remuneration Motivation And Organisation
Leadership Talent Winning The Succession Wars
Time Management Part 2
Corporate Team Building
The Key Skills of a Top Manager
Balanced Scorecard
Business Growth When To Ally And When To Acquire
Business Growth Examining Five Killer Strategies For Trouncing the Competition
Business Growth The New Rules For Bringing Innovations To Market
Business Growth Exploring Growth Outside The Core
Business Growth Funding Growth In An Age Of Austerity
Ford Unveils Power Ranger In Australia
Ford8217s Bull Ready To Rumble
New Mercury With A NotSoNew Name
GM Augments Weak January Sales With New Deals
The 7 Rules of Upward Communication
The Interim Manager39s Executive39s Role
The Importance of an Independent Valuation