Grow Your Business Through Mentorship

January is National Mentoring Month

By:

Grow Your Business Through Mentorship

mentorWhen you start a new business, the possibilities are endless. From the type of products or services to deciding a company name, you can take any direction you want.

Being your own boss can also come with challenges. When you own a business, it’s up to you to set priorities and make decisions. You may encounter situations you haven’t faced before and feel unsure about how to proceed.

Fortunately, you don’t have to go it alone. Mentors through SCORE, an SBA Resource Partner, can provide expert guidance. Based on their business experience, SCORE mentors can provide an objective second opinion when you confront a problem or need to make a tough call.

When Abram’s Nation owner Rose Morris invented the Safety Sleeper, a tent-like structure that secures special-needs children with sleep issues, she turned to her mentor at SCORE for help getting it to the marketplace. “The education I received from my SCORE mentor was invaluable in growing Abram’s Nation to become a million-dollar company,” Rose said. In 2017, she was named SBA Exporter of the Year.

According to SCORE, 87 percent of entrepreneurs with a mentor are still in business after one year, compared to 75 percent of those without a mentor.

SBA Resource Partners helped countless small businesses — like Abram’s Nation — to start new companies and raise start up. They also help grow capital and have helped sell millions of dollars in products and services globally last year alone.

  • Small Business Development Centers counseled and trained over 250,000 clients.
  • SCORE helped nearly 200,000 clients.
  • Women’s Business Centers counseled and trained nearly 70,000 clients.

For National Mentoring Month, take the proven approach to business success. Use these strategies to secure your own business mentor:

  • Connect with a mentor through SCORE. With more than 10,000 volunteer mentors, SCORE offers free small business mentoring. It has more than 300 chapters nationwide and online help via video chat. On SCORE’s website, you can request a mentor with expertise in your industry or who can answer a specific question.
  • Seek guidance from other SBA Resource Partners. In addition to SCORE, Small Business Development Centers provide free counseling and low-cost training to help small business owners start and grow their businesses. Veterans Business Outreach Centers provide entrepreneurial development services to eligible veterans, while Women’s Business Centers give free and low-cost counseling and training to women entrepreneurs.
  • Attend networking events. Industry events can be a great place to start.. This is especially true if you are in a highly specialized field and want to find a mentor within that niche,

Comments