A mentor for small business can be a useful asset for running your business. You can always benefit from having someone who can support you on your journey, providing a wealth of business experience and a fresh insight.

A business mentor is someone who can provide guidance and support having already been through the process themselves. They can use their experience to help you transform your business.

Small businesses that receive mentoring survive for five years or more, which is double the rate of those who do not engage with a mentor.

A mentor can give you:

• Direction through complicated business matters
• Motivation
• Support when the going gets tough
• A sounding board for new ideas
• Help develop new business skills
• Introduce you to new contacts
• Help drive your business forward
• Give you confidence
• Push your boundaries

A mentor can help you grow your network of business people and organisations, helping you connect with others. Working for yourself can leave you feeling very isolated so your mentor and the networks can take away that isolation.

Your mentor will want to build rapport with you and should be someone that you feel comfortable with, that you can share not just problems with but also celebrate success with. They should be good listeners, but not just agree with you all the time.

Mentor Me is an organisation that can help you locate a suitable mentor.