Bill Gates had Warren Buffet, Mark Zuckerberg had Steve Jobs, and Steve Jobs had Bill Campbell — The biggest business leaders in the world have all been both mentors and mentees. No matter how competitive you think you are, especially when you are just starting your business, the truth is, success is a team sport and you need the right people by your side to get where you want to be. After all, trying to do great things can be difficult, but trying to do them all alone by yourself, is almost impossible.

Let’s take a look at why all great leaders have mentors and mentees.

Why you should have mentors

A mentor has been in your position before which is why they can offer you valuable support, insights, and feedback by giving you their experience in the form of knowledge. They can be your counselor, guide, advisor, and Sherpa; helping you get through uncharted waters successfully.  

See what great leadership looks like

Connecting and communicating with business leaders who are all successful in their own fields helps you see what great leadership really looks like. You get to understand the importance of soft leadership skills which can help you communicate effectively and work closely with your team.

Finding the right mentors can also help you develop the necessary hard skills required to be a successful leader who has the ability to make even the most difficult of decisions.

Learn how to accept and give feedback appropriately

One of the biggest challenges, especially for new leaders who suddenly have a whole team of people working under them, is giving and receiving constructive criticism. While it’s important to give feedback, it is very easy for you to come off as patronizing and insulting which can not only exacerbate the problem, but it can also make your team lose respect for you. At the same time, you also need to be able to easily take feedback and criticism from your team to make yourself a better leader.

When you have a mentor you are quite literally asking them to criticize you all the time and give you valuable feedback. This not only helps you learn how to accept feedback and implement it, but you also learn how to give feedback in the right way without it coming across as rude or distasteful. 

Someone you can talk to your problems about

No matter how great of friends and support systems you have, they won’t really understand the problems that you face every day and the technicalities of your position unless they have been in your very shoes. 

A mentor can do more than just give advice and brainstorm ideas with you — They can be your confidant, someone you can discuss your problems with. They can listen to you, understand what’s bothering you and help you think of solutions together. After all, the relationship between a mentor and a mentee is all about trusting each other’s judgment and capabilities more than anything. 

Mentorship is about forming a great rapport and relationship which is centered around mutual respect and passion. In order for you to make the most of it, you need to achieve perfect communication, maintain complete honesty, and connect as frequently as you can.

Effective networking and sponsorship

Mentors might not have the answer to every question and doubt but they can help you connect with people who do. Whether you need some guidance handling the technical aspects of your business or you have been stuck about how to approach your brand’s expansion plans, the effective network of your mentors can allow you to connect with the right experts to get the right guidance in business.

How taking on mentees can help cultivate today’s leaders

Mentoring is often assumed as a one-sided relationship where mentors offer their time and valuable insights without expecting anything in return. But that couldn’t be farther from the truth. Mentors get just as many advantages from taking on mentees.

In an increasingly digital world with a rapidly evolving workplace and market, mentees can actually help mentor the mentors too. Most mentors have a vast experience of several decades with a clear idea about what works and what doesn’t. But that also makes it difficult for mentors to change their set mindset. 

On the other hand, new startup founders and business owners are all about being agile and making changes on the go.

Mentees can help mentors recognize the new and groundbreaking technologies along with the changing customer preferences. The newer generation is more tech-savvy, understands how social media can make or break businesses, and they were also readily accepting remote work culture even before it became a norm in 2020. 

Mentees can help mentors look ahead in the future and pinpoint trends and technologies which have the potential to gain popularity and in turn broaden their horizons.

Find the right mentors to guide you

The right mentors can give you the much-needed perspective, support, and guidance that you need to successfully manage your business and expand it in ways that wouldn’t have been possible if you were out on your own alone. 

Jupiter Business Mentors can help you find the right mentors and connect with them. With 35+ mentors from different fields, finding a mentor is now just as easy as clicking a few buttons. 

Take a look at how Jupiter Business Mentors can help you and get 90 minutes of free sessions with any six mentors on the platform.