How to find a Mentor for your startup
By: Midhun Areeckal
Tags: Startup, Startup Lessons, Startup Mentor, Find A Mentor, Mentor

The importance of a mentor for a business is so valuable. People tend to forget this sometimes, but having someone to support you with their industry experience is a golden ticket for a starting entrepreneur. We have heard it several times that a mentor can bring in changes to your overall business and performance. It’s true, but how do you find a mentor!?

There are several ways to find a mentor for guiding you on your startup potentially, but it’s not always easy to find one. Here, we’re taking a closer look at ideal ways you can travel to find a mentor for your business.

Let’s get started!

Look Inside

The simplest way to find a mentor is by searching for one in your close network. Maybe it can be your parents, some close relatives, or a professor at your university. Or even a senior at your college. But, rather than randomly going to a person for mentorship, be clear about the qualities your mentor should possess.

An ideal mentor is someone who has already done what you’re planning to achieve in life. Suppose if you’re planning to build a startup in the real estate niche. So, for you, a mentor should be someone who has a good track record in the same industry. Initially, look into your network to find such a mentor, but if you don’t find one, it’s okay.

Attend Event’s in your industry

One of the greatest ways to meet like-minded people is by attending industry-specific events and meetings. You can potentially find your role model figures from such events. As if you took that extra mile to ask for mentorship, possibly you could grab a mentor who could help you on various occasions of your startups’ growth.

But, here, rather than just vaguely asking for someone. Be sure you have that dedication and have done something on your startups’ functions because you shouldn’t be a waste of time for the mentor. S/he will have things to do in his life, and dedicating time for you means he is expecting to see you succeed. So, be prepared for working hard.

Join Incubators or Accelerators

Straight away, most incubators will have mentorship programs. If you join in any of them, you could find someone whom you can connect with and later on advise you in your business functions. Make sure you’re not paying for his mentorship as then it would be consulting.

Startup incubators can help you network with other entrepreneurs, which is an ideal option to get suggestions from them to find someone ideal for your industry to offer mentorship.

Go Online

Several online platforms provide adequate mentorship for entrepreneurs for business ventures. Take advantage of these opportunities to explore various options and find a mentor for your startup.

LinkedIn: You can join industry groups and connect with people who share the same interests and have achieved various milestones in your niche.

Micromentor: An ideal website that is free to use. There are options to connect with mentors from different parts of the world. Ideally, this is a great platform to have multiple mentors for getting advice on various topics concerning your industry.

SCORE: It’s a great online platform to find volunteer mentors with whom you can physically meet for mentorships.

What If You Don’t Find One!?

Maybe after trying all these methods, you don’t find a suitable person as a mentor. Well, don’t be upset. You just have to find an ideal person you think can be your mentor in the industry and go find his/her books, podcasts, interviews, and much more. You can definitely get great advice from their life and experience that you could use to build your startup in that industry. As when you grow in the industry, possibly one day, you could reach out to that person and have them as your valuable mentor.