Over the course of most people’s careers online they will hit a roadblock or be struggling to reach the next (or in some cases, first) level of their business and will seek out a coach/mentor to give them the push they need to move forward while being held accountable.
A lot of people assume that only new people would need coaching/mentoring. This could not be further from the truth. In fact, every successful person in their field has a mentor who not only helps them to stay at the top of their game but also help them get unstuck when they needed.
While most people have a positive experience with a mentor, there are those who don’t. While there could be several reasons they can usually be broken down to three major areas.
- You didn’t commit and do the work that the mentor suggested. Even the best mentor in the world can’t make you successful if you don’t show up and do the work. This post isn’t about this situation as nothing can be done for people who expect that hiring a mentor will bring them riches without them having to do anything. There is no such thing as instant push button riches with no work involved, no matter who tries to tell you that.
- Your mentor is teaching you outdated methods that no longer work (and haven’t for years) or lacks a focus in their guidance that doesn’t allow you to progress in your business. In other words, their methods are not giving you a proven roadmap to success.
- Your mentor is not experienced in what they are teaching you. Often times they are just reading a script or have no experience in what they are teaching. They can talk a good game to get you to sign up, but then they are just winging it. It’s truly the blind leading the blind at that point on your dime.
I have been burned in the past by picking the wrong mentor. I am not going to name names in this post, but safe to say they did mentoring a disservice. While the money lost for a program that doesn’t work is obvious (sometimes costing 5,000-10,000 dollars or more with no guarantee of success), the true losses go way beyond just the money.
One major loss is opportunity cost. Instead of chasing the wrong mentor down the wrong path you could have been spending your time and money on something (or someone) that would have brought you the results you wanted. The time you have wasted on this wrong direction is actually a double loss because you could be that much further along with your success with the right mentor.
Another major loss is psychological cost. If you work something and it’s a failure (even if it isn’t your fault), you will beat yourself up and feel like you will never be successful. You will be less likely to try something new or follow the right mentor. This could be devastating in the long run. The right mentor and a golden opportunity could be staring you right in the face and you are too gun shy to take action.
The advice I would give would be to do your homework before hiring a mentor. Do more than just looking at their website and sales letter. Go out to forums and see what people are saying. Find some of their students and ask for honest assessments of their experience. Try to find people with long track records (some programs are just a few weeks old) of not only success in their own lives but with their student’s businesses. If they have a trial period sign up for that and make sure the program works for you and that you are comfortable with the mentor. If they have a money back guarantee then they are confident that they are going to be able to help you.
If you don’t have a mentor and you are not where you want to be in your business, you need one. My current mentor has been a huge boost for me and my business. Not only does he have a long track record of success in his own business, he also has been mentoring people for over 10 years and his students have all been successful. Although he has a 100% success rate (minus people who quit on themselves and won’t do the work), he still offers a money back guarantee.
I am excited to see where my business continues to go over the next several years. While I regret not finding him sooner I am glad I finally did and that I took action.
To your success,
Chuck Abbott
P.S. Comment back if you have used a mentor before.
