Ask yourself, are there things you wish you knew when starting out that no one told you? Why not consider taking the time to become a mentor? As a mentor, you can offer sound career advice and guidance to fellow females looking to become business owners. According to Forbes, particularly for women, having a mentor who knows the challenges associated with
balancing the responsibilities of a burgeoning professional and family woman is priceless.
Want to learn more about why you should mentor aspiring female entrepreneurs? Continue reading for the top five benefits of becoming a mentor for hopeful female business leaders.
How to Mentor Other Women in Business:
1. Find Future Employees
Taking the time to mentor someone helps you to develop a deep professional relationship with a young entrepreneur. In addition to giving them advice about the beginning stages of their career, you could end up finding female employees, too.
If you decide to expand your business and need to hire new employees or collaborate with another business, your mentee could have the right skills you’re looking for, or they could introduce you to new connections. Most likely, if you’re interested in mentoring a female entrepreneur, you’re probably passionate about hiring female employees as well. While you become a strong mentor, consider how this individual could contribute to your business, or help you find new female employees in the future!
2. Give Back to the Community
The personal satisfaction derived from giving back to your community is priceless. Mentoring a female entrepreneur makes a significant contribution to the development of a fellow-owned female business. Contributing in this way will have the result of increasing the number of successful female business leaders in your community, which provides role models for younger generations. Ultimately, the intrinsic gratification you experience from this relationship is invaluable!
3. Create Lasting Friendships
Getting to know your mentee better will likely develop into a lasting friendship over time. It’s hard not to feel amicably towards someone you witness evolving and becoming successful because of your coaching. Likewise, your mentee will feel grateful for all the support you’ve provided. You’ll be surprised at how your relationship with your mentee can turn into a long-term
friendship with a fellow women business owner!
4. Further Develop your Management Skills
As a business owner, it’s important to always hone your leadership skills. Even if this mentee isn’t an employee, being their mentor could be a great way to practice your leadership abilities. Due to this, you will find yourself equipped with the necessary skills required to motivate and train your staff. Even though you want to invest in your mentee, you’ll also gain skills from this relationship.
5. Broaden Your Horizons
Finally, spending time with someone of a different generation in an earlier stage in their career can offer fresh new perspectives. Although you have plenty of knowledge to share with your mentee, don’t forget that you can learn from them as well. Listening to your mentee’s ideas and experiences can enable you to better connect with your employees, serve your customers, and improve your operations.
Conclusion: Invest in the Future of Women-Owned Businesses
Overall, embarking on a mentor-mentee relationship is win-win. Particularly as a female mentor of an aspiring female business leader, you’ll receive countless benefits in helping your mentee grow into a successful leader.