Working With Online Business Success Mentors

Behind every successful business person there is a mentor. I truly believe this, and have seen it work this way for many years. The definition of the word ‘mentor’ is ‘a trusted teacher and advisor’. If you do not have at least one person who can mentor you and be your trusted advisor, you are missing out on a strategy than can change your life. Mentoring will not only make your life easier and more rewarding, it will also increase your bottom line dramatically. Allow me to explain exactly how this can work for you to help you to achieve your goals and reach your highest potential.

My background is in classroom teaching in the public schools of Los Angeles and in residential real estate appraisal throughout southern California. For more than twenty years I worked in these two careers simultaneously, and having the right mentors was a huge part of my success.

As a new teacher in 1986, I was given a mentor by the administration at the school where I had been assigned. This woman, Mrs. Highlander, was a master teacher who took me by the hand and guided me through the maze of teaching the 38 students in my class that first year. I spent time on the phone with her well past midnight on many nights, asking her questions that had to be answered so that I could do my job. We also became friends that first year, as I became more comfortable with what I was doing and learning, thanks to her help. Mrs. Highlander knew that without her help I would not have made it through the year.

Five years later I was asked to be a mentor teacher to three new teachers who had been assigned to our school. I loved getting to know them and being able to share my insights with them as they moved from novice to journeyman level teachers in my classroom before moving on to having their own students.

The same was true with my real estate career, even though it was much more informal. In 1989 I decided to make a change from being a real estate broker to becoming a residential appraiser. These two careers are vastly different, and I was not sure where or to whom I should turn for help with this change. The answer came when I attended a Saturday training course during the fall of that year. I connected with several experienced appraisers in my class who worked with new people to help show them the ropes. Two of them, Dale and John, agreed to mentor me during the next year. Looking back on that time I am reminded of how much I did not know. Whenever I had a question it was one of them who offered the answer. This helped me to become a Certified Residential Appraiser in the State of California in January of 1991, something I could not have achieved without help from others who had come before me.

Who answers your questions? This is the million dollar question, because I do not believe it is possible to become proficient in any field without the guidance of someone who has gone before you.

Jeanette Cates is one of my online business success mentors. I have been a part of her Online Success Incubator since the summer of 2008. In the summer of 2009 I began referring my own students to the Incubator. Jeanette takes everyone by the hand, showing us step by step what we need to do in order to be successful with an Internet business. Much as the master teachers and experienced appraisers were there for me as I began my classroom teaching and appraisal careers, Jeanette is there for new entrepreneurs.

Armand Morin and Pat O’Bryan are also my mentors. Each of them has a place in my life that helps me to become a better person, both personally and professionally. Make the decision to accept a mentor into your life. Asking for help is the sign of a great leader. Allowing a mentor to guide you, make suggestions, and watch joyfully as you succeed is a gift that will last a lifetime. Achieve the success you want and reach your highest potential with an online success mentor.