image by Definitely Katy on Etsy
Sometimes, in this crazy life of trying to get ahead with our businesses, we feel lost, overwhelmed, we have questions that seem to have no answers, we don’t know where to begin, we feel stress, discouraged, & just plain stuck in a rut.
Do you feel that way right now?
Have you ever felt this way in your business journey?
Of course you have! We all have! But do you know what? There’s hope! There’s a way to get out of that rut.
What you need is a mentor.
Mentor, adviser, guide, preceptor…whatever you want to call it.
The Importance of Having a Mentor
The #1 reason for having a mentor, in my mind, is so you can learn from them.
When we start out with our businesses, we don’t have all the answers. We’re inexperienced. We haven’t tried things. We don’t know what works & what doesn’t. We don’t even know where to get the best information. We learn over time & yes through experience, but one of the benefits of having a mentor is that you can skip some of that & learn it right off the bat from them.
When you’re looking for someone to mentor you, you need to make sure that it’s someone who’s:
1} Got their crap together
They can be the coolest person around, but if they don’t have it together themselves, how on earth are they gonna teach you how to have it together?
2} Successful at what they do
If you want to learn more about growing your creative business, make sure the person that’s mentoring you has a creative business that’s growing. If they don’t, then they’re more than likely not the ideal mentor for you. I mean, let’s think about it. If they can’t make their creative biz work, how are they gonna give you advice on making yours work?
3} You can relate to, learn from, & work with
If you’re gonna learn from someone, make sure it’s someone that your personality meshes well with. If they’re a go-getter & you’re more laid back then you probably won’t do well together. You won’t understand their assertive style & they won’t understand your casual style.
I’m not saying that you shouldn’t follow & connect with all different sorts of people that can help you in your business because you definitely should. That go-getter may have something for you one day that strikes a chord & really motivates you to get your booty in gear. That person who’s life runs on routines & schedules may really give you a helpful tip that will push you to get something done. You need to have a lot of different kinds of resources at your fingertips.
I’m talking about really committing to someone. Joining their community…their tribe. Working with them one-on-one. You need to make sure that this person really cares about helping you in your business. That they aren’t holding back information because they don’t want to give away their “best kept secrets”. That they’re going to stick with you, even when you don’t agree on something or if there’s a misunderstanding.
Benefits of Having a Mentor
The benefits of having someone to work with, run you ideas off of, & get their advice & opinions are going to be different for everyone, but some of the primary benefits are:
- you can learn from them
- you can work with them
- you can promote them
Having a mentor isn’t a one way relationship. You don’t only take from them all the time. Believe it or not, you’ll have information to share with them that will be beneficial to them. You may eventually decide to work on something together that will help you both out & cross-promotion goes without saying.
Having a mentor isn’t about copying them. It’s about growing, building relationships, & being generous with each other.
How to Find a Mentor
Step 1
Find a few people that you admire. It can be a combination of things that draw you to them such as their wisdom, their lifestyle, their businesses, their personalities.
Step 2
Follow them on their blogs, their social media sites, & in their businesses. See what you like that they do & what they don’t.
Step 3
Introduce yourself to them. Tell them who you are. Tell them why you admire them or how they inspire you. Everyone loves attention & everyone likes sincerity so don’t just throw something together to send to them as soon as you find someone that you think fits the bill. Take some time to get to know them & how they work first. Then send them an email that really says something special.
Step 4
Promote them. Get involved in their lives, their plans, their businesses. Be generous. Trust me, it won’t go unnoticed.
Already Have a Mentor?
Many of you probably already have someone that you look up to & admire, but do they know that? Have you told them lately? Have you thanked them for what they’ve done for you?
Email them. Write a blog post about them. Sing their praises to your social media friends.
Here’s a sample email that you can use to thank someone who’s been a mentor to you, whether they know it or not, just in case you need something to help you get started.
Hey there {mentor’s name},
My name is {your name} & I wanted to let you know how {grateful, thankful} I am to you for your {what your grateful or thankful for}. You’ve been very inspirational in my biz & you’ve motivated me to {how they’ve motivated you, what they’ve done for your biz, your story}, so thank you. I think of you as {a friend, a role-model, a mentor, etc.} & I look forward to getting to know you better over time!
Best Wishes!
Name
Website
Links
Again, be generous. It will take you far.
