Do I Need a Mentor as a Consultant?

Many professionals today have turned to mentoring relationships for guidance and support. Apprenticeships were once the norm in the business and professional world, but they are now a practice relegated to specific industries.

Internships, which have largely replaced them, are designed to expose an aspiring professional to their chosen industry. Yet internships often lack the aspects of personal connection and tutelage so important to an apprentice relationship. Connecting with someone in a mentoring relationship, particularly in a field like independent consulting, can result in valuable benefits for both the mentee and the mentor.

What Are the Benefits of Having a Mentor?

1. Guidance and advice

One of the most recognized benefits of working with a mentor is the business-related guidance and advice they can share. For new consultants, this can be invaluable, as a mentor can help you build the fundamental knowledge and information needed to start a business and work for yourself.

Even for independents with foundational knowledge, a mentor can help you recognize and develop business-related strategies. Mentors can also serve as a sounding board for ideas, questions, or brainstorming sessions.

2. Networking opportunities

An experienced mentor who is well-established in their field will likely have strong connections in place with vendors, other consultants, and possibly potential clients. In addition to providing you with the names and contact information of people who could become part of your professional network, mentors can take it one step further by making an actual introduction. Often, an introduction will carry the same weight as a referral or even an endorsement.

Beyond integrating their mentee into their network of business connections, mentors can also teach you how and where to make your own connections. This is particularly valuable to those new to self-employment or to those who have recently shifted the focus of their business and need to cultivate a new professional network.

3. Encouragement and support

While mentors can be valuable resources for business knowledge and professional benefits, a good mentor is also someone who serves as a confidant, friend, and support system. A mentor is someone who is there to listen and provide advice when you vent frustrations, offer support and encouragement when you hit a rough patch, and guide you in a direction that will help you achieve positive business results.

What Are the Benefits of Being a Mentor?

1. Experience a fresh perspective

While the mentee is generally considered to be the student, mentors can often learn quite a bit about themselves from a mentoring relationship. Mentoring a new consultant can provide valuable opportunities for introspection.

The simple value of having another person to share ideas with can spark creativity and innovation, regardless of your mentee’s experience in the field. It can also help you get your own business out of a mental rut caused by routine and habit. New consultants may also give you insight into new and emerging trends to keep your skills and industry knowledge current.

2. Expand your connections

While the early stages of mentoring may include helping your mentee make connections, the ability to share and expand networks can soon become a two-way street. As your mentee establishes themselves as a consultant and learns from you as a mentor, they will likely branch out and expand their network by connecting with people who they can, in turn, introduce you to. These may be people you haven’t connected with yet or people in a new and innovative niche that you hadn’t considered working with before.

3. Personal satisfaction

For many mentors, taking a young consultant under their wing and helping them find their footing and establish themselves brings an immense sense of personal satisfaction. Whether “paying it forward” after learning from your own mentor, giving back to your business community, or simply lending a hand to someone who is in the same struggling early stages of consulting that you once were, serving as a mentor can be a rewarding experience that results in your own personal and professional growth.