BUSINESS MENTOR: The Significant Role That A Mentor Plays In a Workplace

By Butz Bartolome

I am sure that you are familiar with the very popular book written by Robert Kiyosaki, the “Rich Dad, Poor Dad”. I often cite this book as an example of how people view life differently. Although neither of them is wrong but is based on how a person can be able to make a difference. The struggles are different, which way would you want to go?

We grew up always hearing our parents and some older individuals value our education. Not taking education seriously is like losing so much from life. It is not merely wasting money, but as well as time and opportunity of being able to become someone that is less than ordinary. Although, we do know several successful businessmen who have established huge brands despite not being able to finish school. But what sets them apart from those who refuse to learn in school and stopped?

The success of any business is a combination of so many factors as what I have been sharing with you. One of the keys to success is being able to allow yourself to gain more knowledge of what your business is all about. Not everything is learned from school and learning does not stop once you step out of school.  Thus, the years of experience of certain individuals are a good source of information that can help any entrepreneur and aspiring entrepreneurs alike.

What is a mentor?

A mentor is a professional who shares knowledge and advice in assisting a business to successfully grow. The relationship built benefits entrepreneurs, its employees, and the mentor in so many ways.

My years of being in the business allowed me to help so many people which I am proud to say are among the well-known brands in the Philippines. Seeing how they have grown makes me proud of myself. I see success as not merely the amount of money that a business gains, but as well as the number of people that these businesses have been able to help. And this is the reason why I just love what I do because I see how people these days are going the extra mile just to prove that they can do better and become significant in this life.

Benefits of Mentoring

A mentor acts as a guide and provides valuable information that can help an entrepreneur on how to manage his business better. The benefits that a mentee receives from being mentored are:

• Educates the mentee on how to accept feedback in important areas, such as communications, technical abilities, change management, and leadership skills
• Helps the mentee better understand the organization’s culture and unspoken rules, both of which can be critical for success.
• Helps the mentee learn to take better control of his or her career.
• Improves the mentee’s interpersonal relationship skills.
• Increases the mentee’s self-confidence.
• Provides an important networking contact for the mentee.
• Teaches the mentee how to speak up and be heard.

Being in a mentoring relationship also benefits a mentor in so many ways, such as:

• Allows the mentor to “give back” — to both the organization and the mentee.
• Reminds the mentor how to listen actively rather than passively
• Encourages the mentor to share knowledge, which helps increase the mentor’s sense of self-worth.
• Strengthens the mentor’s interpersonal relationship skills.
• Teaches the mentor about other areas/departments within the organization.
• Helps re-energize the mentor’s career.
• Leads to more personal satisfaction on the mentor’s behalf.

When mentees are able to grasp everything taught to them it provides a clear-cut impact to the business as it fosters a more solid and sustainable business in which its employees feel a sense of cooperation and harmony. Thus, when everything is in place, it promotes a positive workplace environment.

Entrepreneurs/Employers who seek advice from an expert should extend their knowledge to their employees since they are the people that can help the business grow. By providing mentoring program, it allows the employees to identify their weaknesses so that they can be able to improve them. The benefits to the organization can be unending.

• Increased employee satisfaction – Studies have shown that those employees who underwent mentoring programs have higher job satisfaction which then leads to increased productivity.
• Employee retention – Employees are likely to stay with their job when they have become more aware of their weaknesses and know how to strengthen them.
• Career Growth – Employees who become more inspired in doing their jobs are likely to shift into a higher position.
• Quality – There is definitely an improvement in the quality of services that the employees provide as they have become more aware of what they should and should not do.
• Synergy – There is better collaboration between the employer and its employee wherein the employer is more focused on dealing with highly skilled areas of work while the employees focus on what they required to do without much supervision. The mentee/employer can be given credit for the success of the team due to the excellent performance that they have given.
• Reduces Frustration – Some employees may feel lost or not knowing exactly how to respond to what is being asked of them. Therefore, providing a mentoring program allows an employee to widen his knowledge about his job which eventually leads to increased productivity and higher job satisfaction.

Success is never far behind. Be open to everything that can help you and your business in achieving your goals. There is nothing in this world that is impossible to achieve if we just focus on the benefits that it can bring to many people. Seeking advice from the experts is something that no entrepreneur should just ignore. The benefits are just remarkable. Thus, entrepreneurs will finally have more time focusing on their financial success.