How To Approach & Add Value To Someone You Want To Be Your Mentor

Without a doubt, a mentor can truly turn a mile into a yard. This is why most self-help leaders and business gurus highly recommended that you secure a mentor on the way to your life goals. While mentors are greatly important, you should put thought into exactly how you will approach a mentor.

A young man once approached me with an interest in learning the ins and outs of real estate. I was willing to help because I am a believer in helping others to climb the ladder of success. During the process of discussing the actual meet up, I discovered that the young man lives 10 miles away from me. What shocked me was that the young man requested that I meet him 5 miles closer to his location. What added insult to injury is that the young man wanted me to sacrifice a Saturday, which is time I have designated for my family, to meet with him 5 miles away from my home.

This is absolutely the wrong way to approach a mentor. Think about it. You are approaching someone who can potentially increase your earnings by more than 100%. Should that individual make a sacrifice to come and share knowledge with you or should you be willing to make the sacrifice of time and money to see the person?

When seeking a mentor, you must respect the other person’s time. if you want to pick the brain of an expert in an industry or someone who has experienced the kind of success that you want to experience, you must do all in your power to make things as painless as possible for the mentor.

Another important factor in your journey to securing a mentor is that you must be persistent. I have had cases where individuals have sent me a single email and when they run into me, they share that they have been trying to get to me for a long time. Really? One email? If you want to have a mentor in your life that can transform your status, you have to push as hard as you can to get the person’s attention. You will need more than a single call or a single email. You will need to follow up repeatedly.

One of the best ways to learn from a mentor and gain access to them is to offer some skill that you have that can meet a need that they have. You will find many mentor-worthy figures who are in need of skills such as marketing, content creation, graphic design, etc. If you offer your skills in return for mentorship, you will be in a much better position than someone who has nothing to offer but wants the mentor to spend their resources to teach and guide.