Finding a Mentor–A Freelancer’s Simple Success Secret
Posted September 15, 2011 in Getting Started, How-To
Is there a shortcut that freelancers can take when they are starting out to lessen the learning curve and achieve their goals more quickly?
You bet there is! It’s called…finding a mentor.
A mentor is a more experienced freelancer or other professional who you can turn to for guidance and who can answer your questions about freelancing. Although there are many benefits to working with a mentor, surprisingly few freelancers choose to work with mentors.
In this post, I’ll list some of the ways that having a mentor can benefit a freelancer. I’ll also provide some tips to help you find the mentor who is right for you.
6 Advantages to Working with a Mentor
Whether it’s the “loner” mentality or just a lack of knowledge about how beneficial a mentor can really be, many freelancers never use the services of a mentor.
Here are six reasons why freelancers should consider finding a mentor. Freelancers who have a mentor often:
- Learn from secondhand experience. It’s great to learn from your mistakes, but it’s even better to avoid making the mistakes in the first place. In a nutshell, this is often what having a mentor can do for you. Your mentor can tip you off to methods and processes that really don’t work well.
- Benefit from expanded network connections. Your mentor likely has a broader base of connections since they have been in business longer. For that reason, your mentor can introduce you to or point you towards individuals who can really help you grow your business.
- Have access to another opinion. How many times have you wished for a second opinion on a crucial decision? Often, a freelancer has no one to act as a sounding board. Freelancers with mentors, however, do have someone who can take a fresh look at their ideas.
- Get industry-specific tips. If your mentor works in the same freelancing profession as you do, they may be able to help you identify specific tools and techniques that work well in your field and steer you away from those that are bad ideas.
- Get general business tips. Lack of basic business knowledge is a huge hurdle that many beginning freelancers face. However, an experienced freelancer has been running a small business for a while and can tip you off to some business principles you should know.
- Have more confidence. Last, but not least, a freelancing mentor can provide encouragement. You’ll grow in confidence as he or she points out those areas where you have excelled.
The bottom line is: there’s nothing like learning from someone who has been there.
Now that we have discussed how a freelancer can benefit from having a mentor, it’s time to talk about how to find the right mentor.
6 Tips for Finding the Right Mentor
When looking for a mentor, first and foremost, you should look for someone whose personal style is compatible with your own. Naturally, you should seek out someone whose opinions you value. Finally, your mentor needs to be able and willing to spend some time interacting with you.
Here are six possible ways to find a mentor:
- Paid coach. Many experienced freelancers offer paid coaching or mentoring services. If you want to find a mentor who works in your specific niche, this may be the best way to do it.
- Professional association. You can also find experienced freelancers (and potential mentors) in professional associations and business networking groups.
- Past or present teacher. If you are a recent graduate or keep in touch with your former professors, it’s quite possible that one of them may be welling to serve as your mentor.
- Past employer/colleague. For those freelancers who have held a traditional job before becoming a freelancer, their past workplace may be the ideal place to find someone experienced in their field.
- Social networking. More than ever before, experienced freelancers and inexperienced freelancers can “meet” and get to know one another online.
- Score and similar organizations. Many nonprofits offer business mentoring services to small business for free or for a reduced cost. In the United States, an example of such an organization is SCORE, which provides both mentoring and workshops for small business owners.
A final word–treat your mentor respectfully and always be considerate when it comes to how much of his or her time you use.
Other Resources
Do you wish to learn more about mentors and mentoring? Here are five more helpful posts:
- From Susan Johnston at FreelanceSwitch, 5 Tips for Freelance Mentor Relationships
- From Preston D Lee at graphic design blender, 11 personalities traits of a good freelance mentor
- From tumblemoose at FreelanceWriting, Do You Have a Freelance Writing Mentor?
- From Jo Ann Sweeney at FreelanceFactFile, Seven foundations for successful mentoring
- From Freelance Writing Jobs, Do You Need a Writing Mentor?
Your Turn
You can probably tell that I’m a huge fan of mentors, and rightfully so. When I was starting out I had the good fortune of working with several other writers who were willing to help me grow as a writer.
Did you/do you have a mentor? In what ways has your mentor helped your freelancing business?
Image by @boetter
Related posts:
- The Simple Truth About Success
- Planning: The Not-So Secret Success Tool That Anyone Can Use
- Finding Success Through Your Strengths
- 3 Simple Productivity Hacks For Web-Working Freelancers
- Five Simple Tactics to Find New Clients
About the author: Laura Spencer is a freelance writer from North Central Texas with over 20 years of professional business writing experience. If you liked this post, then you may also enjoy Laura’s blog about her freelance writing experiences, WritingThoughts. Laura is also on Google+.
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24 Comments
Gold
September 15th, 2011 at 9:21 amLaura – Good thoughts. I was under the impression that the Small Business Administration could be of some help with mentors.
Alex
September 15th, 2011 at 9:57 amOnline forums can be very useful source for advice but it’s important to find the right place. It’s also important to do the research first and ask specific questions rather than just wading in and giving a blanket question like “how do I become a web designer”.
Rachel
September 15th, 2011 at 11:01 amGreat post, Laura! I worked closely with a business coach when I first started freelancing and don’t know where I’d be without her today. It was nice to just have someone to vent to who understood exactly what I was going through.I also sought out mentors specific to my line of work (editors).
It can be scary venturing out on your own – mentors help to make the transition a lot more comfortable.
Jessica
September 15th, 2011 at 11:24 amExcellent, this is exactly why we decided to start with training. Not everyone is willing to share, but if you’re really interested to learn, you will learn the tricks of the trade!
Sharon Hurley Hall
September 15th, 2011 at 11:30 amGreat idea, Laura. I’ve mentored and been mentored and have enjoyed and learned from both sides of the process.
Laura Spencer
September 15th, 2011 at 11:48 amGold, That’s a good tip. Score is partly funded by the SBA, but they may have other mentoring programs as well.
Alex–What you say is true. Especially the part about not asking blanket questions. On the right forum, specific questions are more likely to get answers.
Rachel, Thanks for sharing your experience working with a coach. :) Coaches can be costly, but the right coach can be well worth the expense.
Jessica–Are you talking about training employees? Many companies do train their employees, but freelancers are on their own to make sure that they learn what they need to know.
Sharon Hurley Hall, Great point Sharon! Mentoring can be beneficial to the mentor as well.
Keep the comments coming!
Josh Jones
September 15th, 2011 at 1:27 pmI go to meetup group one a month where we get to show off what we’re working on and get ideas for people that are doing the same thing.
It’s a very great resource. And the non-full time freelancers bitch about their day jobs. :)
Eduardo Inácio
September 15th, 2011 at 3:04 pmGreat idea.
Eduardo Inácio
September 15th, 2011 at 3:04 pmGreat idea, Jessica. I’ve mentored and been mentored and have enjoyed and learned from both sides of the process.
Laura Spencer
September 15th, 2011 at 5:20 pmJosh Jones–Meetups are valuable experiences for many reasons. Meeting colleagues is just one of those…
Eduardo Inácio, Thanks!
Daquan Wright
September 17th, 2011 at 3:55 amAbsolutely, it’s basically an apprenticeship. I’d LOVE a programming mentor, as it’s an area I want to grow in deeply.
I think it’s just hard to find a good mentor though. As many teachers as there are in university, many are not good. I think it just takes persistence and luck…
Nikhil Malhotra
September 17th, 2011 at 2:42 pmA mentor does help in a lot of ways.A small hint from his side can solve a tuff technical problem.I have faced this situation at times and this person who I respect a lot (my mentor) helped me a lot.
Darren Moten
September 19th, 2011 at 8:01 amI actually found my unofficial mentor on twitter. He has been pretty awesome so far. Helps me tighten up my typography, and anytime I have issues with business ethic (mines or the clients) he has been a very valuable asset in helping me approach problems in a more sophisticated manner.
If memory serves me correctly, I started following him on twitter via dribbble. He offered critique on the first or second iteration of my portfolio and I started connecting with him more to pick his brain. (Oh and he also invited me to google+.) We don’t agree on my design/developer aspirations but I am pretty determined to do both well and he’s actually pretty supportive.
Shoutout to mentors.
Neeraj Sachdeva
September 29th, 2011 at 9:54 amExcellent post. I will chime in with others about Forums, though I still have to look for any. I think social networking has been amazing in connecting like minded people. Mastermind groups can be good too, though it can initially be difficult to find the right group.
get paid
April 14th, 2012 at 8:08 amHands down, Apple’s app store wins by a mile. It’s a huge selection of all sorts of apps vs a rather sad selection of a handful for Zune. Microsoft has plans, especially in the realm of games, but I’m not sure I’d want to bet on the future if this aspect is important to you. The iPod is a much better choice in that case.
angry birds free online
May 6th, 2012 at 8:10 amI’m not that much of a internet reader to be honest but your blogs really nice, keep it up! I’ll go ahead and bookmark your website to come back later. Many thanks
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