We all want to improve and get more results. If you are like most small business owners you’ve benefited from a mentoring relationship as well as tried to mentor staff and colleagues along your way.
When you are looking to grow your business, reaching out to others will get you there quicker and lead you farther than you would be able to go on your own. Look for someone who specializes in what they do. Perhaps that’s someone who only cleans medical facilities or who has found a great niche in cleaning banks. One of the biggest benefits of mentors is that they have been there and done that. They are people who are experienced and are often eager to share what they have learned. As you do so, here are a few more thoughts to get even more out of these important relationships.
Get More out of the Relationship
There are two ways I would recommend getting more out of a mentor relationship–Seek to add value and gain understanding.
First – seek to give more than you get. Your mentor relationship is a two way street. You are seeking knowledge and insight from your mentor, but be proactive and listen to their problems too. Often things that are simple to you, whether that be technology, client relationships, or invoicing, are a strenght that you have and can be a way that you can consistently add value to your mentor relationship. You want to make it worth their time to meet with you and the number one way to do that is by adding as much value to the conversation as you can every time you meet.
Second – gather insight and knowledge about who they are. Ideally you would be seeking out someone who has strengths that you admire or need to develop. To go beyond just guessing or hoping that you’ve selected the right person, you can quickly gain deeper insight and increase the effectiveness of your communication by using a simple tool based on the popular Myers-Briggs personality test located at 16 Personalities. The test is free and takes around 10 minutes and quickly gives you insight into yourself and into your mentor’s preferences. Once your mentor has taken the test, study the results so that you know how to better interact with them and also so you can better identify the traits and strengths that you want to learn more from them.
Go to War with a Multitude of Counselors
As you seek to get your business operating and delivering at a higher level, you will need help. There is simply too much to know. But one of the best things you can do is to not only have a mentor, but have a whole team of mentors and people interested in your success. Everyone is good at something, but no one is good at everything. In this globally competitive market, you can’t be good at it all either. Luckily, you can put together a team of people who are good in the specific areas that you need help and someone’s expertise. This takes some work on your part to set up your team of to to specialists, but as the old proverb says “by wise counsel thou shalt make thy war: and in multitude of counselors there is safety.” (Proverbs 24:6).
The time and effort put in to put a team together will pay off exponentially in saving you from mistakes, getting you to the end result quicker and making higher quality decisions.
As you are assembling your team, consider what areas you need to fill the team out. In the case of getting new clients, Upper Limit Consulting has made it their goal to be one of the best in the world for cleaning professionals to help them grow their client base in a specific and focused manner. We follow the same process, seeking out mentors of our own in practice management, sales, consulting, and client engagement. We know that we can’t do it all, but we also know that we can deliver at a high level in one area, and that is getting you and your firm new clients. So as you look to the new year, to build your team, set new goals for your business growth, seek out a mentor. Schedule a free call today to see if working with us would be a fit.