Do I Really Need a Mentor or Coach?

What are mentors and coaches?

A mentor is someone you respect and look up to as an expert in your field who can help show you the ropes of the business. It can be someone you have befriended that you can informally bounce occasional questions off of, or it can be someone you pay in order to pick their brain.

You can have many different mentors, all with more experience in different areas than you currently have. Maybe you have an SEO mentor, a techy mentor, and an article marketing mentor. You can go to any of them for help in these areas when you need it. Perhaps you can mentor others in your strengths as well.

Mastermind groups also fall in the general category of mentoring because with a mastermind group it’s like you have several mentors who help steer you straight and give you ideas. Mastermind groups are great for giving you help and holding you accountable.

A coach is usually a more formal affair. You pay them to show you what to do, step by step. Some coaches set up coaching programs with material and you don’t get to talk to them or have very limited access to them. They only allow a limited number of people into the coaching program and you all start at the same place.

A private coach is someone who works with you one on one. Of course, this is more expensive but you get the coach’s full attention and may find success sooner.

Why do you need a mentor or coach?

Why you need a mentor or coach can be answered by this interesting bit in “The Answer” by John Assaraf and Murray Smith: If you blindfolded a person and gave him a Rubik’s Cube to solve, it could take him up to 6 billion years to do it. If the blindfolded person sat next to a Rubik’s Cube expert who gave only “yes” or “no” answers to every twist of the cube the blindfolded person made, it would take the person less than 2 minutes to do it!

Ask yourself, do you want your route to success to be slow with many false turns? Or do you want to find a path that’s clear and short that gets you quickly to where you want to be?

Finding a mentor can be easy. Just take a look around Wonderful Web Women and you’ll see mentors all around you. These women are great role models and are successful at their crafts. You can learn a lot from them because they have the experience to tell you “Try it this way, not that way.”

What skills do you need with a mentor or coach?

Not so much about skills, but you do need to commit yourself to learning what they are trying to teach and you should be willing to do the work or lessons they give. You are seeking a mentor or coach to learn skills that you will need. They can only do so much; you need to take the reins of your own horse. I will also mention that you should keep an open mind and be eager to try new methods instead of whining, complaining, and stating that it won’t work for you because…[insert excuse here].

Take every chance to reciprocate when you can. Name dropping can help both of you – “I was at my wit’s end about that plug-in, when so-and-so, the WordPress King, came to my rescue.” It costs nothing to give them a public nod of appreciation and it helps others know who the experts are.

What other strategies work well with having a mentor or coach?

Finding a mentor comes naturally when you build relationships with others. Join forums, reach out to help others, and don’t be afraid to ask questions and give feedback. You won’t regret making online friends and the added bonus will be your business success. It’s like your business has jumped into the carpool lane – not only is it fun to have people along for the ride, but you get to drive faster than most everyone else.