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To the blog for small and medium sized business (SME) owners.

Sunday, October 28, 2007

10 Characteristics Your Business Mentor Should Possess

Your business mentor should possess the necessary skills to guide you in achieving your goals. The business mentor will display many attributes that will be necessary to help you achieve success and include:

1. Relationship building – building trust
2. Honesty
3. Commitment
4. Experience
5. Acting as a sounding board - 'a shoulder to cry on'
6. Independence
7. Objectivity
8. Retaining a balanced perspective
9. Robustness
10. Elimination of the ‘loneliness’ of the business owner

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Nice post. I want to run my own business soon, so I'll remember this one. I know it'll be challenging, so I can use all the help and advice I can get. I've been thinking about buying a business lately instead of starting one from scratch. Maybe a franchise? I don't know. Do you have any suggestions or advice? Thanks!

Unknown said...

@Angela - I can tell you this now... Running a business will be tough. I'm sure there will be days you'll want to give up, but if you stick through it and persevere, becoming an entrepreneur will be worth it. That being said, there are a lot of resources on-line if you're looking to buy a business instead of starting one from scratch. I know there's this site called BizTrader.com, and it's like this on-line global marketplace where you can buy or sell a business. You can also use it to find a lender, broker, etc.
I also highly suggest checking out books and magazines, since they're generally up-to date with information. Local small business groups are also good because you can network, and they can update you on the area you plan on doing business.
Good luck!