Mentors

In the first months of opening your business, you’ll need to make many important decisions. But you don’t have to make every decision on your own. Ultimately, you’re responsible for you business, but you can always consult a mentor for advice.

What is a mentor?

A mentor is someone who has been down the same path you're taking. He or she is experienced, successful and willing to provide advice and guidance — for no real personal gain. But how do you find a mentor?

Here are some thoughts on working with a mentor for your new or existing small business venture.

Small Business Development Centre

In our Central Coastal area that of course means our Small Business Centre, we offer free resources and services to support small business owners and we can do that face to face, online or in a classroom situation. 

Our Mentors provide confidential counseling, mentoring and advice to small business owners throughout our region nationwide via a network of business executives, leaders and volunteers. 

We provide management assistance to current and prospective small business owners including financial counseling, marketing advice and management guidance. If needed we can provide specialized assistance with information technology, exporting or manufacturing. 

If your business plans to sell products and services to government, you may need specialized mentoring and guidance. It's a good idea for you to contact us and make an appointment to discuss what options there may be available for you to receive assistance with this kind of business. 

We can help you to meet and network with like minded business owners, you'll need to be prepared to share with them and to let them know what you hope to achieve. In turn that means that you must be aware of the need for confidentiality.

Working with a Mentor

If you would like us to work with you on your business, you can be sure that we will treat every discussion and information that you share with us as being totally confidential. Always remember how important it is when working ion a mentoring situation to: 

• Be organized, prepared and consistent. Make sure you are respectful of your mentor’s time.
• Do not expect your mentor to run your business for you or make decisions for you, you alone are responsible for your business. You should have realistic expectations about what a mentor can provide you.
• Plan your mentoring sessions in advance. 
• Take notes, create action items and be prepared to review progress during your next session.

Working with an experienced Mentor can really make a difference for your business so please fell free to contact us or call us now on 08 9655 1068