5 Advantages of Having a Business Mentor

5 Advantages of Having a Business Mentor

You are educated, ambitious, and energetic. You are ready to take the business world by storm, and are willing to make the needed sacrifices to do so. You may also be the only person, at the moment, who realizes your potential and cares about the things you want to do.

Regardless of industry or profession, the business world is filled with young bright people who are not unlike yourself. The competition is intense. And to break out, to make the right moves and direct your energies towards the right places you need a .

A is someone who will be a constant friend and guiding light throughout your career. Such persons are typically older and more experienced and considered to be a top talent in their field. He need not be your officially assigned mentor, which is usually a person who is pushed onto you when you join a firm. Indeed, the best way to find a mentor is to sift through your professional social circle. This may ultimately lead you to finding someone with whom you are able to form a natural bond.

I got lucky. My mentor was the person who interviewed me for the first job I took out of grad school. He was recruiting me for a big project that the company was gearing up for. We hit it off instantly during the phone interview. The project fell through, and we actually never got to work together. But he played a very important role in the success I went on to achieve?recommending me to people, steering me in the right directions, opening up whole new worlds of opportunity.

Indeed, these are some the advantages of having a . You get:

• Knowledge
• Guidance
• Connections
• An alter-ego
• Inspiration

You may have a great deal of academic knowledge about your field. However, a can give insight into how such knowledge works in delivering practical solutions that solve client problems.? A mentor can also advise you on the kind of training opportunities you should take advantage of and the sorts of hands-on-experiences you want to acquire in order to advance your career.

People who are already successful in business, like your mentor, can help you make the connections you need to develop your reputation and forge your own brand. A can also serve as an alter-ego. He can act as a sounding board for your ideas. And last, but certainly not least, a can be your model and inspiration for success. I can say with all sincerity that my mentor is the kind of smart, well-connected, and extraordinarily successful man I want to be.

Business mentors are often called coaches nowadays. I don?t particularly care for this term, but it seems to be irretrievably in vogue. There is an article on GregClowminzer.com that describes some of the advantages of business coaches. It?s speaks to truths which are consistent with my own experience.

Remember, no one can succeed in the business world alone. Having someone by your side who is intelligent, knowledgeable, and trustworthy will make your journey to achievement a little less rocky.