The concept of mentoring is not a new phenomenon, however to guarantee success as a small-business individual, it’s crucial to take a collaborative approach and mentorship is the most valuable method to accomplish this by. Learning from a mentor who has gone down a similar path before you, will ensure you ascertain the knowledge and know-how to speed up your career progression. A strong mentor will also ensure you avoid critical mistakes they may have made in the past.  

Finding the right mentor can be difficult; existing in all shapes and sizes and specialising in a multitude of niche categories. Self-made millionaire, wealth creation and personal development mentor, Zaki Ameer, owes his success to mentoring he received early on in his career and he believes it is crucial if you want to achieve your goals.

Zaki Ameer shares his top 5 qualities to look for in a mentor to ensure a beneficial partnership ensues:    

1. Have the results: Having already identified your business or career goals, you need to compare these aspirations with what exactly your potential mentor has achieved. You may be reaching out to more than one mentor at a time so this will require some thorough research, however there is no point partnering with a mentor who has not achieved what you plan to achieve for yourself!

2. Practise what you preach: Fundamentally, your mentor needs to be following their own advice. Why would you take their recommendations if they don’t do so themselves? As a mentor, not practicing what they preach completely kills their credibility.  If there is a disconnect between what your potential mentor is teaching and what they are doing, then I wouldn’t recommend you choose this candidate.

3. Accountable: Being in a highly influential leadership position, your mentor must be able to assume responsibility for their actions and decisions. More importantly they also need to be able to hold you accountable. This skill is difficult to master but makes for a great mentor; they need to be able to establish clear expectations of you, gain your commitment, continuously follow up with you and provide you with feedback and potential consequences if promises are not met.

4. Growing: Despite the amount of success your mentor may have already achieved, they should always be striving for more and aspiring to be more successful. Your mentor needs to be continuously aiming higher and pushing their own boundaries to garner future growth. In doing so, mentors will continue to learn more valuable insight from experiences, which can then be passed onto you.

5. Partnerships: It would be ideal for your mentor to be partnered up with other mentors from different industries. That way their shared knowledge will be passed onto you, giving you a more wholesome experience through a balanced approach. For instance, your wealth mentor might be working with a health mentor, and their combined knowledge will provide you with well rounded advice focusing on more than one area of your life. 

Mentoring can be for any aspect of your life, as long as you choose someone you truly aspire to and who has the ability to lead you towards your goals, they will be an extremely beneficial resource to have on your side. By using the above tips you will be able to find the best mentor for you.