The Role of a Mentor

Launching or running a business is exciting. You get to claim your independence. You can finally make the rules. But the details can bog you down.

When you don’t have experience, you can get overwhelmed by questions about what to do to ensure success or how to make business decisions that are specific to your industry. Mentors have been through it and can give you their support and share their wisdom with you.

Approximately 50 percent of small businesses don’t last five years. However, 70 percent of small business owners make it past that hump when they work with advisors to build their leadership skills as they learn and grow.

Those who want to be on the successful side of those statistics need to make sure that they create a solid relationship with some type of guide or teacher who helps them reach their full potential. Mentors need to understand their roles so that they provide valuable insight and create confident trailblazers that have the determination to run a thriving business.

Serve as a Guide

According to the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, a mentor is a “trusted counsellor or guide.” The secondary definition is “tutor, coach.”

Most experts agree that someone in a mentoring position plays a different role than a coach would. Coaches typically help businesses set and meet goals. They focus on helping entrepreneurs, business owners and managers come up with the most efficient ways to achieve their objectives. 

A good coach doesn’t tell someone what to do. Instead, coaches help draw out someone’s inherent wisdom through structured tasks, exercises and questions. For this reason, a business coach doesn’t need experience in an individual’s industry to help them develop the skills that are necessary for a productive, efficient business. 

A mentor, on the other hand, usually has direct experience in the same field as the mentee. Those in mentorship positions help entrepreneurs and business owners learn how to work industriously, make assessments and set priorities. 

But their guidance doesn’t stop there. They have been through the same challenges that their mentees are undergoing. They can explain how they navigated certain obstacles so that their protégés can identify their options and understand what works without having to experiment themselves.

They are advisers. They are teachers. They are leaders, examples and guides.

A mentor can help an individual create a map to steer through the stumbling blocks that come with starting, managing or running a business.

Create Structure

When someone is launching a business, mentoring can help them create a business plan and structure the business. A colleague in this position can offer advice for setting up the foundation of the company.

The relationship usually goes on for a long-term period. Mentoring advisers continue to work with individuals when they have questions about the intricacies of the business, including understanding the cost structure, setting up marketing strategies, making hiring decisions and allocating resources.

When difficult decisions have to be made, people in mentorship positions can help their mentees look at the pros and cons of the available options. In many cases, the mentor has been through a similar situation. Mentoring can offer specific advice from a personal perspective when the business owner otherwise has access to only general recommendations.

Give Advice and Feedback

A relationship of this kind gives individuals a chance to get advice and feedback when they need it. Mentees can look to their advisers to provide an objective outlook.

The counsellors don’t have a stake in the decisions that are made. Therefore, they can provide a devil’s advocate perspective and debate problems without worrying about offending anyone.

Be Accessible

A mentor doesn’t have to be instantly accessible. However, advisers do need to be approachable enough that the mentee feels comfortable looking to them for support.

During mentoring, the mentee must be trained on the best way to contact their adviser when they need assistance. They should set up a protocol that involves understanding when to share important information, how to contact the mentor and what to expect in return.

Mentees should be instructed to reach out to their guides before circumstances become actual problems. When business owners and managers turn to mentoring to evaluate potential issues before they happen, they learn how to manage their situations to ensure success instead of simply putting out fires.

Provide Accountability

Mentoring can help someone reach their business goals. People in this leadership position provide accountability and keep their mentees on track.

Mentoring helps people take responsibility for their actions. People in the leadership role can often serve as a direct example of what can be achieved when mentees accept ownership for their decisions.

To create accountability, mentors must set specific, realistic expectations. This establishes clear boundaries and provides direction for the relationship, enhancing the potential for positive results.

Help With Networking

Having an adviser gives mentees a chance to build their networking opportunities. A colleague on the giving end of this relationship has been through it all before.

They’ve usually created a network for themselves. They can help mentees access this network to boost their own potential. An adviser is an insider who is on the outside of the mentee’s social and professional circle. This relationship can help someone make contacts that they wouldn’t otherwise be exposed to.

Offer Motivation and Support

Part of the mentorship role is to provide support and encouragement. These advisers should demonstrate that they are counting on the mentee to act a certain way.

As a role model, a counsellor is inherently motivating. These individuals have usually been successful doing what the mentee strives to accomplish.

They can enhance the motivation factor by working with the mentee to access intrinsic motivation. When mentees consistently access the fundamental rewards that come from certain behaviours or a particular level of performance, they maintain their desire to reach their goals.

All mentoring relationships are unique. To make the most out of this ongoing association, the adviser must be respectful, honest and non-judgmental. The best connections are built on trust. Both of you should know what you want out of the relationship and give as much as you receive.