How to find a mentor for your business
You can watch or listen to this article as a podcast instead.
Any problem you have in your business, there is someone out there who has already solved it. To them, that issue you have which is stopping you moving forward will seem trivial because they’ve dealt with it 100 times before. That could be a practical problem like not knowing how to get a website online, or it might be a personal growth problem like suffering from imposter syndrome. Or it might be simply not knowing the best way forward with your business or what to do next. No matter what it is, there are plenty of people out there who already know the answer – or will be able to help you work it out.
First, let’s look at why you should have a mentor before we look at how to find one. One of the best pieces of advice I ever had was ‘there’s no need to reinvent the wheel’. People have been setting up and growing businesses for over 5,000 years – in fact the oldest business that is still running was created in the year 578. So in that time, people have made all the mistakes that it’s possible to make and have overcome every problem that you might come up against.
Let me give you an example. Whenever someone asks me about starting up a business, one of the first things I talk to them about is the importance of testing before spending – because I didn’t do that with my first business and was left paying the price, quite literally back to the bank, for a decade.
So even just a quick chat with someone who has done the thing that you are trying to do will save you money, it will save you energy and it will make sure you avoid all the mistakes that you’re probably about to make next.
Having someone mentoring you gives you a lot of motivation to get things done, but it also gives you more confidence in business too. If you know you’ve got someone more experienced than you on your extended team to help with decisions, then that boosts your confidence of making those decisions. Because in business, sometimes there is no ‘wrong’ or ‘right’ decision – and actually taking a decision so that you can move forwards is, in some situations, more important than the actual decision you make. Often you have to make a decision and then make sure it becomes the right one.
The mentors you already know
Having that extra experience combined with accountability is a really valuable tool. It will speed up the growth of your business and make you more likely to succeed, no matter what point you are with your business or your career. And often, mentors come with contacts who they might be able to introduce you to, or be able to suggest trusted providers that they have used themselves in the past.
So how do you find one? Well, first, ask yourself: what do you need help with the most right now? Because the ideal mentor for what you need at the moment might be someone you already know. For instance, if you are just starting a business and don’t know how to go about it, then who do you know who’s already got a business that’s doing well? It might be an old college friend, it might be your uncle or your daughter-in-law. If you know someone who has already done the thing you are trying to do, reach out to them and see if they would be open to talking to you about it.
Because the person who’s mentoring you doesn’t need to be a professional business mentor. They might be just someone who’s done the thing you are trying to do and can give you the benefit of their experience. They’re probably not going to give you that fortnightly Zoom meeting with a task list and accountability calls, but they can give you their opinion and experience.
And I’ve had old friends get in touch because they are just starting a business, or a podcast, or have a trade show coming up, and they want to know if I’d be open to grabbing a coffee with them for a chat. And if they are genuinely an old friend I usually say yes.
I’ve done this myself too – I’ve asked friends and family members if they would be open to having a 20-minute call so I could pick their brains because they have had experience of, or know something about, something I don’t.
So start with who you already know. If you think you have someone in your family or in your network that’s already done what you are looking to achieve, send them a message to see if they will give you the benefit of their experience in return for buying them a coffee.
It’s also worth reaching out beyond your network with the same question. Because you are vegan, that gives you an ethical connection with other vegans. That ethical connection means that, sometimes, you can get a response from people that you wouldn’t have been able to otherwise. So before you say ‘I don’t know where to find a mentor’, first take a look at who you already know. Who’s in your extended network or who might you be able to reach out to because you share a vegan connection with them?
Put yourself in the same room as the people you can learn from
If you don’t have that person in your network right now, then make a plan to change that. Where are the people going to be that have the experience that you need to take advantage of? For example: if you are a tattoo artist and you want to grow your business but you don’t know how to, then how can you get to know the tattoo artists who charge per hour what you charge per day?
Ask yourself: ‘who do I need to get to know and how am I going to meet them?’. Quite often you will be able to find an industry event or expo where those people are going to be gathered in one place. For example, if you are a tattoo artist, there are tattoo industry events where you can get to know the top people in your industry. If you are a personal trainer, or an accountant, or a cleaning company, or whatever it is that you do, your industry likely has a conference where the top people in your sector will be. So find it, and get yourself booked on.
Most of the time, the top people in your industry don’t consider themselves to be famous in any way. So at these specialised industry events you’ll probably be able to just walk up and talk to them. The people giving presentations often hang around after their talk to talk to people and will likely be happy to give you their email addresses for a follow-on chat.
Linking up with the people who have already done what you are tying to do is really important. It’s not just about learning, it’s about normalising. If you surround yourself with people who have done exactly what you are trying to do, then what you are trying to do seems so much more achievable.
Buying specialist knowledge
Sometimes, it’s also worth paying someone to give you some of their time if they have specialist knowledge that will help you. We’re used to doing it with professionals like accountants and lawyers, but many social media influencers and other experts have an ‘hourly rate’ for consultancy. You can often pay people to have a Zoom call with you if they have really specialist knowledge or have done the exact thing that you are trying to do and want to get feedback on your plan.
So when it comes to finding a mentor, there are probably more options open to you than you think. The more people you get to know, the more networks you are part of and the more you just ‘get out there’ and meet people, the more chance you have of finding the people who can help you and your business.
Because you are vegan, that gives you an ethical connection with other vegans. That ethical connection means that, sometimes, you get a response from people that wouldn't have responded otherwise.
Hiring a business coach or mentor
So there are a lot of options already open to you. But it might be you are at the point where you need something more formal and structured – you want someone who’s going to have that regular call booked in the diary with you to work towards a longer-term goal. And that’s when it’s worth investing in a professional business coach. Just like if you were trying to get better at doing anything, from public speaking to tennis, you’d go find a coach to train you.
How much you need to spend varies. Some business coaches will cost a couple of hundred pounds or dollars a month, some will come in around £/$ 500 and some will come in at £/$ 1,000 or even higher depending on what goal you are looking to achieve. For example, if your business is currently turning over one million and you’re looking for a coach to help take you to five million turnover, then someone who has that experience and skill set is going to cost more than if you are needing to find someone to help you launch your first company.
One of the most important things with a business coach is finding someone not just who has the experience you are looking for, but is someone you actually enjoy dealing with too. Your coach needs to be someone you get along with well. That’s why if you are vegan, it’s really beneficial if you can find a coach who shares those values. And there are plenty of vegan business coaches out there.
We offer business coaching at Vegan Business Tribe. We also have several Vegan Business Tribe members such as Steve Swindon in the UK who especially has a lot of experience with food company founders; we’ve got Stephanie Harter based in Florida who coaches people to be coaches!
So get to know your potential coach first. If you belong to a local in-person networking group then there will often be a business coach in that network which will give you a chance to get to know them before working with them. Pretty much all coaches offer a call or a meet-up first to see if you’re a good fit for each other. I do this as standard – if anyone is thinking about working with me as their coach, then I encourage them to book a Zoom call first so that we can talk about what they are looking for and see how we get on. Because if I don’t think I’m a good fit for them then I want to introduce them to someone else who might be a better one.
Make the most of your coach
One final tip is to work out what you are trying to achieve with coaching before you engage with someone. If the reason your business isn’t growing is because you are just too busy – you know, you just can’t find the hours in the day – then signing up with a coach that’s going to give you more things to do isn’t going to help. It’s a bit like joining a gym: just signing up and paying the monthly fee isn’t going to get you fit, you need to actually put the work in on the equipment. So instead, tell the coach straight away that time is the first problem you need help with. Don’t just do your first session, come away with a list of tasks that you know you haven’t got time to do and then ghost your coach when they are prompting you to give them an update!
Because a good coach will help you tackle your time problem. One exercise I do with the people is called ‘automate, delegate or bin’. We list all the things that you do that are taking up time and go through each one and ask: 1. Can we automate (or semi-automate) this thing? 2. Can we delegate it (even if that means paying a freelancer)? Or 3. can we just bin it (can you simply stop doing it)? You’ll be amazed how many thing get stuck on your to-do list simply out of habit that have little value in being there.
Or it might be that you have a really specific goal you want to achieve. I’ve had a couple of new coaching clients who have said they want me to help them get their first paying client – and I love that because it gives us a laser-focus on what we’re trying to achieve on the 3-month programme. It also gives me the chance to lay out what work they will need to do over those initial three-months to make it happen, and how achievable they think it’s going to be for them to do all that in that time. And two out of three times we’ve made it happen, and the third person got their first client soon after our 3-month programme finished so I’m still claiming it!
To wrap up, do you need a mentor? Yes. It will help you grow your business faster, it will give you more confidence and keep you accountable.
Does that need to be a paid coach however? No, not always.
Just like you wouldn’t move into a huge office space or warehouse when you’re just starting out, hiring a business coach is something you might do when you have the resources to invest. But, if you are trying to build a business and don’t currently have someone mentoring you, whether paid or informal, you need to find that person. No matter what point your business is at right now, there is someone out there who will be able to show you what comes next.
A bullet point recap of what we’ve covered in this article:
- Whatever problem you have, others have already overcome that problem. A mentor helps you avoid mistakes and pitfall saving you time, money, and energy. Remember, there is no need to re-invent the wheel!
- Having someone on your team who’s got more experience really helps you to make decisions. Because sometimes there is no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ decision – but not making a decision is stopping you from moving forwards.
- Your mentor might already be in your network. Look at your Facebook friends or your extended family – is there someone who’s already done what you are looking to do who might be willing to give you an hour in return for buying them a coffee?
- Mentors often come with a network of contacts and can introduce you to other key people in your industry or offer suggestions of providers they have used before and trust.
- You can use your shared veganism to reach out to someone who you might otherwise not get a response from – remember, vegans like to help and work with other vegans!
- Whatever your industry, it will likely have an expo or industry conference where you will be able to get direct access to the top people in your industry. These are the people who have already achieved exactly what you are trying to achieve and they may be happy to give you their details for a follow-on chat.
- In some cases, it is worth paying someone with very specific expertise for an hour of their time to show you how they have done something or to teach you a specific skill.
- It’s important to find a mentor or coach who you enjoy working with and shares with your values. Take that discovery call. Meet up with them for a coffee. See if you’re both a good fit for each other.
- Be clear about what you want to achieve. If you know you need to sort your time-management out first, then make that goal number one for coaching. Or if there’s something specific you want to achieve, let them know on the first call.
Mentoring with Vegan Business Tribe
Shameless plug alert! We offer both mentoring and business coaching with Vegan Business Tribe. Set up a Zoom call with our founder David to find out if coaching is right for you.
