Experienced Startup Mentors

A startup mentor from a similar trade vertical and within the specific space of your startup would assist you to understand the nuances of the business and also the varied nature of the market. General mentors generally give generic recommendations and this, at times, wouldn’t be very useful for your startup. We have seen many Startups work with mentors that are not too relevant make mistakes that industry-specific mentors would never make.

It’s always best if you are mentored by somebody who has gone through the process of entrepreneurship and has succeeded as an entrepreneur in many ways. Mentors from corporates who manage large businesses are useful for general business problems, however, it is a ballgame that is different you will need to validate your idea, raise money and steer the organization through difficult times. Entrepreneurship is difficult and an individual who has walked that path can realize the problems that are various guide you properly. A mentor who’s got built an ongoing company from idea to exit is ideal.

A mentor with strong connections in the market and the ecosystem you are operating in is very valuable. The mentor has the potential to open doors that are highly invaluable to startup entrepreneurs. The mentor could leverage his connections to connect you with a business community that can provide you with early customers, strategic engagements, interested investors and much more. For example, investors feel comfortable and would typically make a larger investment in the event that a startup was referred to them by their trusted network. This applies in the exact same way engagements with potential B2B customers are made.

A startup mentor that is great should assist you in finding great advice to the solutions for the issues faced by your startup—whether it is funding, technology, market access or organisation culture. The mentor should help advise you to build solutions to these issues creatively and efficiently, and bring forth his knowledge that is experiential to similar situations. The mentor must also allow you to look beyond the daily operational and issues which can trap the startup. The mentor should help you look at technologies and changing market dynamics, help you build alternate revenue streams, and scale and solidify your position within the market.

You need to closely work with your mentor, therefore good mentor-mentee relationship will help immensely. The startup mentor should empathise through the different trials and tribulations faced by you, and they should help you understand the bigger picture when working with you. Down-times are common problems faced by all entrepreneurs and a mentor that is good will help reduce some of those burdens. It is good to avoid mentors that are highly opinionated. There should be more space to openly discuss viewpoints that are different than to merge on common grounds quickly.