The top line answer is that we’re all both. Equally when we dig down into what we take and what we give, it can be curious to explore how strategic we are with our time and our growth.

 

Mentoring can be a very rewarding way to both give and take. As a mentor we get to reflect on our skills and knowledge and see them through the eyes of our mentee, whilst at the same time giving tangible support to someone who can benefit from our factual knowledge and experiential wisdom.

 

Mentoring also provides the mentor with an opportunity to get some personal growth and potentially develop a new skill set, especially when they ask their mentee for feedback.

 

 

Here at Striding Out we operate a Mentor Bank which is in place to support new entrepreneurs and social enterprises in their journey, so the ‘who’ is something we can connect you to.  We have lots of entrepreneurs who would be thrilled to receive some mentoring.

 

 
Think back to your own first steps and think about the questions you had, the excitement and frustration you felt, and also the hard earned lessons you received for free from your own mentors.  All that knowledge, wisdom and experience is what you have to give! Plus any technical or industry/profession specific knowledge that comes along as a bonus.
 
Mentoring can be a way to make a tangible difference to another entrepreneur – and you always get some learning from the experience for yourself. As a coach once said “I’ve yet to work with a client that didn’t teach me something about myself”.
 
If you’re interested in mentoring another entrepreneur and would like to know more, please email [email protected].