If you’re thinking about finding a business mentor, you might not know where to start. Reaching out to someone you don’t know for advice can also feel daunting. However, many experienced business owners will be happy to share their knowledge with you when approached respectfully. Mentors aren’t only for fast-growing startups with large networks. Many will support you from the very beginning.
Key takeaways
- Business mentors challenge your thinking, share experience, and help you avoid costly mistakes.
- You don’t need to pay for a mentor, as many people in business will volunteer to offer support.
- Choosing a mentor with relevant experience and a good personal fit matters.
Whatever your industry or the scale of your business, there’s almost always a mentor out there who’ll be willing to support you – whether paid or voluntary. If you’re an early-stage founder, mentorship can provide valuable advice that can help you avoid expensive mistakes and work more effectively early on in your journey. The right support can improve an entrepreneur’s confidence and decision-making. Mentors can also provide advice on business practicalities, including how to raise money for your small business.
With many support options available, you need a good fit to get the most out of mentoring. In this guide, we’ll outline how to find a business mentor that’s right for you and explain the importance of their role.
What is a business mentor?
A business mentor is a professional who offers guidance to others to help them work through challenges, develop their skills, and grow their business. Sometimes, mentoring is voluntary. Other mentors offer it as a paid service. A mentor can be anyone who provides support, regardless of whether it’s formal or informal.
What is a growth mentor?
A growth mentor is a particular type of business mentor who focuses on helping businesses scale beyond the startup stage. They’ll often be someone who has experience building a business and will share guidance focused on strategy, hiring, leadership, and expansion.
What does a business mentor do?
Business mentors give practical advice, but they won’t usually make decisions for you. Instead, they’ll share their perspective and lessons from their own experience, which you can learn from. Business mentors also challenge people’s thinking, which can help you avoid mistakes. Their support can be particularly valuable during the early stages after company formation, when founders make many decisions for the first time.
A mentor can also help keep you accountable. Sharing your goals with someone else can encourage you to work towards them. They may also introduce you to useful contacts and share practical tips, such as ways to promote your business on social media.
Some of the things a business mentor will do include:
- Share expertise. They’ll offer insights on strategies and ways of working based on their own experiences, which you can then apply to your own business.
- Help you tackle challenges. While mentors won’t solve every problem, they can help you troubleshoot current issues and prepare for future ones.
- Encourage networking. Mentors can introduce you to useful industry contacts, including potential collaborators and investors.
- Understand your goals. A good mentor will listen to you and tailor their approach based on your needs and ambitions.
- Build your confidence. A mentor should help build you up by offering constructive feedback and celebrating successes.
No two business mentoring relationships are the same. Some arrangements will involve regular meetings, while others are more informal.
Do you need a business mentor?
Not every founder needs a business mentor. However, you may benefit from having someone challenge your ideas, share insights, and highlight potential challenges.
A mentor may be particularly valuable if you’re launching a company, entering a new industry, hiring staff for the first time, or making unfamiliar strategic decisions. In each of these situations, you’ll benefit from someone who’s faced similar challenges. Mentorship can also help solo founders who feel isolated and those looking to make new contacts when raising finance.
However, not everyone needs a mentor. While there’s always more to learn, those with extensive experience may feel comfortable going it alone. Sometimes, founders already have the support they need within their existing business network. For example, if they’re working with an experienced co-founder and supportive investors, they might not need a formal mentorship arrangement.
Signs mentoring could help your business
You might want a mentor if you’re:
- Struggling to grow your business.
- Repeating the same mistakes.
- Feeling isolated in your role.
- Finding it hard to make decisions.
- Dealing with a high staff turnover.
Looking for a mentor can help you move your own development and your business forward.
What’s the difference between a business mentor and a business coach?
Many people use terms such as business mentor, business coach, entrepreneur coach, and consultant interchangeably. While business coaching and mentoring can both help founders, they usually involve different approaches. Understanding how they differ can help you choose the right option for your needs.
What is a business mentor?
A business mentor shares their experience and guidance. Mentorship is relationship-driven, so it requires building trust and creating a comfortable space for discussion.
What is a business coach?
Whether someone describes themselves as a business coach or an entrepreneur coach, their role typically involves helping people improve their performance through questioning, accountability, and structured goal setting. Unlike mentors, they usually won’t share their own experiences and will remain more impartial.
What is a consultant?
Consultants are usually hired to solve a defined business problem or provide specialist expertise. Unlike mentors and coaches, their support is often short-term and focused on a specific area.
Business mentor vs business coach vs consultant: a comparison
| Business mentor | Business coach | Consultant |
|---|---|---|
| Shares personal experience | Uses coaching techniques | Provides specialist expertise |
| Often ongoing with no end date | Fixed programme that typically runs for a set period | Usually short-term |
| Offers advice based on their learnings | Helps the person they’re coaching develop solutions for themselves | Addresses and solves specific problems |
| Can be as informal as both parties want | Relies on structured sessions | Formal arrangement focused on a project |
| Relationship-focused | Goal-oriented | Outcome-based |
How to find a business mentor: 5 practical routes
Looking for a mentor? There are various methods you can use to find one, many of which are free.
Here are five popular ways to find a business mentor:
1. Utilise your existing network
Your mentor doesn’t have to be a stranger. Perhaps you already know someone you admire and would like to seek advice from. You can start by reaching out to previous managers, colleagues, and other industry contacts. You might even find potential mentors in your friendship circle or extended family.
2. Use free mentoring schemes
There are various free mentoring and other support schemes available. Consider looking into:
- Local Growth Hubs. Supported by The Business Board Network, Growth Hubs help local businesspeople gain the support they need.
- MentorsMe. Run by UK Finance, MentorsMe provides a gateway for people to find mentoring programmes offered by banks, the government, and a wide range of other organisations.
- Help to Grow. Funded by the UK government, Help to Grow is a structured management training programme that helps SME leaders expand their business.
Eligibility for free mentoring schemes varies. Some programmes focus on specific sectors, locations, or groups, so it’s worth searching for opportunities that match your industry and circumstances. For example, Code First Girls supports women entering IT, ScreenSkills encourages mentoring within film and creative industries, and City Disabilities offers guidance for disabled people navigating work in London.
3. Join business communities
You can often find mentors through business meetups. Even if you don’t formalise a mentoring agreement, you can learn from fellow attendees.
Some of the business communities you could join include:
- The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB)
- Chambers of Commerce (there’s the British Chambers of Commerce and local chambers across the UK)
- BNI UK
- Industry associations, depending on your sector
Networking events can be excellent opportunities for building relationships, gaining leads, and receiving guidance. Unsure where to begin? Our guide to small business networking for new founders explains how to make the most of online and in-person communities and events.
4. Search professional platforms
You can also find business mentors via online platforms, such as LinkedIn. While you won’t receive a response from everyone you reach out to, don’t take this personally. Experienced business owners are busy, but that doesn’t mean many won’t be open to sharing advice. If you spot somebody you’d like to talk to, send them a personalised message, explain why you’re contacting them, and ask for a short conversation. Avoid immediately requesting long-term mentoring as this level of commitment can be off-putting.
You may also find prospective mentors via industry-specific forums and platforms.
5. Consider paid mentoring
You may prefer structured professional mentoring. Paid programmes usually offer agreed sessions, clearer expectations, and a higher level of commitment from both sides.
If you pay for a small business mentor, they likely have a paid programme that’ll have defined frameworks to help you grow your business. You may be given tasks to execute to help you stay on track and learn how to function as a new founder.
Whether you engage with a paid mentor or a volunteer, set clear expectations for both parties before agreeing to mentorship.
How much does a business mentor cost?
There’s no set price for a business mentor because mentoring ranges from occasional, voluntary support to structured programmes delivered by highly experienced paid advisers.
According to the Association of Business Mentors, mentoring fees can vary from around £100 to over £500 for a single session. Rates will vary based on a mentor’s experience and location, and the level of support they’ll provide.
Payment models can also affect costs. While some mentors will charge on an hourly basis, others will require commitments to long-term contracts for retained support. For monthly structured support, fees could range from £1,000 to £3,000.
In contrast, some business mentors don’t cost anything. There are lots of ways you can access mentoring for free. For example, you could reach an informal arrangement with a peer or someone you admire. Alternatively, some community organisations and charities provide free support.
The government-backed Help to Grow: Management course offers structured learning and access to 10 hours of 1 to 1 support from a business mentor. While most of the course is government-funded, there is a £750 joining fee.
When comparing mentors, don’t focus solely on the cost of a mentor and instead consider their experience, the structure and level of support they offer, and whether the mentorship will help you reach your goals. It can help to view mentorship as an investment in yourself and your business. Before you commit financially, though, make sure you understand exactly what you’re getting and what you’re agreeing to.
What should I look for in a business mentor?
To stand a better chance at building a good mentoring relationship, look for someone who:
- has relevant experience,
- understands small businesses at your stage,
- has time to commit,
- respects confidentiality,
- shares your values,
- will challenge your assumptions respectfully and ask thoughtful questions,
- communicates honestly and constructively.
Treat the first conversation you have with a mentor as an assessment. While relationships will build over time, you can get a sense of whether you’re a good fit for each other after an initial meeting.
Finding the right business mentor for you
The right mentor for you won’t necessarily be the right mentor for someone else. The best mentor for you will be the one who most closely matches what you’re looking for.
Finding and reaching out to a mentor can feel daunting, but securing support can be hugely rewarding. Many experienced small business owners enjoy supporting newer founders when approached respectfully, whether through formal or informal mentoring.
Rapid Formations offers practical and professional support, helping you register your company and feel confident that your business has the correct foundations in place – while you focus on building your wider support network.
Join The Discussion