Yes I had a mentor when I started my business. He was very helpful and resourceful as well. He did provide good information's and he was up to date with the market trends. I was quite mixed up and confused at the time. Hos experience really helped me a lot.

I can understand as a startup we intent to be penny pinching to spend more on marketing and sales but trust me it is a good investment. Saves thousands down the line. Highly recommended.

Hi Jef, I too have worked with and as a mentor.

Unlike a traditional Business Coach, the mentors that I have worked with cut through the 'guided-self-sourced-solutions framework', and speak frankly about the reality of the business world, life, and everything in between. Honesty is at the core of an effective mentor / mentee relationship and like most intimate relationships where fears, dreams, and personal thoughts are disclosed, it may take time to find the right fit.

Some of the best mentors I have worked with are professionals I respect, admire, and lead by example. The mentoring happens organically as a result of their leadership, approachability, and authenticity.

As a result of my own experiences with being mentored and providing mentoring, I am a strong advocate.

Good luck and let me know if you have any more questions I can help with.

Good morning Jef from rural Australia,

I've had a mentor.

And been one.

Both experiences have changed my business life.

In the early days of my business, I needed help getting started. So sought out someone to guide me. Being given advice by someone much more experienced than me meant that I could skip steps. It really did cut out a lot of time that I could have wasted literally spinning my wheels.

His influence also opened doors I would never have been able to open on my own with the limited experience that I had.

And he taught me to ask questions. And to question everything.

To ignore the people who are 'town criers'. Announcing to all and sundry all the wonderful things they're doing. And how successful they are. But to pay attention to the village blacksmith, who steadily works away, creating something new every day.

He taught me that the only place success comes before work is in the dictionary.

And if someone is spruiking how wonderfully successful they are, go and look at what kind of car they drive!

I've also been a mentor.

And what a glorious experience that was.

After you've been in business for a while, you do lose that initial enthusiasm and optimism.

So mentoring someone just starting out. Who was enthusiastic. And optimistic. Was like drinking a tonic every time we met. And she made me look at my business in a new way.

While I was helping her. She was revitalising me.

She achieved the objective she wanted to achieve. And is now a very successful business in her niche market.

And I look upon her with pride. Knowing that my input was valuable to her.

Best wishes,

~Carol Jones, Ironing Diva❤

Purveyor of The Fitz Like A Glove™ Ironing Board Cover And Other Goodies

350,000 customers. In 29 countries.

Yes, I've worked with a mentor on a couple of occasions. Once many years ago I asked a colleague to be my presentation mentor and he would attend my seminars and presentations and then give me feedback at the end of each one. This was a fantastic experience as he was able to pinpoint some key positives and negatives about my style and delivery and I improved as a result.

More recently, I asked one of my clients to put on a different hat and mentor me on preparation of investment documents for a new business I'm working on. This was also a great experience, and one of his comments led to a focussing of our business idea to the point where I'm now far more passionate about the idea because I found a really nice social enterprise angle to the business that I hadn't expected and wouldn't have found if he had mentioned that one thing.

In summary, definitely recommend having a mentor, particularly if there is a very defined outcome you're looking for.

I have worked with several mentors with varying degrees of success.

For people looking for a mentor, I would advise to be clear on your goals from the engagement.  Then be prepared to end the engagement if it is not delivering, and be very wary of mentors who want you to commit to a long term agreement before they have proved themselves.

My worst experience was a mentor who went bad - although it started well.  He was obviously struggling financially, and came to see me as a cash cow.