In today’s fast-changing world, business people are challenged to react and respond to many difficult situations.  Despite the level of expertise, business people may choose to seek advice from a mentor to be able to react and respond in the most asserted and appropriate manner.  But, what is a mentor?  A mentor is a person that possesses a vast experience, shares information, and provides advice for a determined period of time.

Many companies in the USA have well-established programs where senior people mentor the junior staff.  These programs have shown to help the company to be more efficient as employees learn faster from mentors that have already gone through the process and have even learned from failures.

If your workplace does not have a mentoring program, consider seeking a mentor on your own.  The following are five advantages of having a mentor along your side:

  1. A mentor is a very valuable resource you can count on when facing a challenging situation. He can help share your previous failures and successes that will benefit your thought process before taking action.
  2. A mentor is generally a network marketing resource. Due to their experience and the fact that they have been around in the field longer than you may have, they most likely know a large pool of people in your industry that he can connect you with.  These new potential connections may be key to your business’ success.
  3. A mentor is very objective. He can bring you down to your feet and will let you know what does and what doesn’t work in your field.
  4. A mentor is not going to sugar coat real facts. He will not lie to you! Since he is an outsider, he wants you to succeed and will let you know what brings value to your organization and what doesn’t.
  5. A mentor will provide morale whenever you need to. He will emphasize that it will not be easy, but will encourage you to go through the process during those difficult times.  Remember, he has been around a lot longer and knows the ups and downs in your field.

There are non-for-profit organizations that provide support in finding a mentor.  A very well-known organization recognized in the USA is a company named SCORE (SCORE.org).  This company will find you the right mentor in your field in an expedited matter and the best thing, they find it for you for FREE!  In addition, the mentor will work with you at no cost.  So, are you ready to be a mentee?