As a founder, you might encounter problems you’re unsure how to deal with or areas of expertise you’d want help with. There are several ways to solve this: utilizing team members, hiring someone, self-learning, etc. Having a mentor might be the right choice because it has many advantages. A mentor:
While every mentoring relationship is different based on both the mentor and the mentee, here are a few recommendations and steps to follow for a successful mentorship.
First, it’s crucial to identify what area or problem you need help with. Only then you’ll be able to find and match with a mentor who can assist you. Do not underestimate this step. Being prepared and understanding the challenge goes a long way, making the mentoring session much more productive. Note that besides solving a specific problem, mentors can help you with other things like networking (with customers, partners, other mentors, and talent), personal development, leadership, market insights, domain expertise, etc. Ideally, try to recognize the most impactful lever to seek help with.
For example, an edtech platform was looking to grow revenue. The immediate thought was to expand the user base through acquisition, but analysis showed that churn was the problem. So, instead of getting a growth hacker, they searched for a retention expert.
For some problems, a single session is enough to get a mentor’s perspective to help you solve your problem and move forward. You might even try a few mentors and have a single session with each on the same topic.
Then, some challenges require longer-term mentorships, recurring sessions, and, therefore, much closer relationships with the mentors. Such mentors are typically very senior professionals or domain experts who advise you and help you steer the strategy in the right direction. In exchange for their advisory, longer-term mentors typically expect to get equity. We recommend picking a maximum of three such mentors early in building your business. You should still be the one who leads the company; you should stay focused, and you should spend only a little equity.
If you’re unsure, start with a one-off session and pursue a longer-term relationship later.
Based on your challenge and type of collaboration, look for a mentor who suits your needs. Consider the mentor’s experience. Have they done something similar before? The best person to mentor you is someone ahead of you by a few steps in terms of experience, but not too far. Their advice might be less relevant to your case if the experience gap is significant. When picking a longer-term mentor, consider the upcoming 1-2 years and look for someone who’ll be most relevant for that period. Your company will change significantly, so someone else might be relevant after a few years.
Depending on your platform, request the mentoring via that platform or contact the mentor directly. As part of the request, summarize the challenge you need help with and the type of collaboration you seek.
If the mentor accepts your request, schedule a session with them. Try to accommodate the mentor's needs and be generous with your time. The agenda of the session depends on the type of collaboration. If it's a one-off session, use as much time as possible to dive deep into the problem. Make notes. Mentors will typically share many things you should go through and process after the session.