Mentoring for Mentors: A team that learns together grows together

🔍Insights

Jeenal Jain

Dec 14, 2021 — 3 min read

Mentoring for Mentors

This article is contributed by Mr. Rajesh Kumar Subramanian, Founder, Ghoshak.

When you are on an entrepreneurial journey, you have a blank canvas in front of you to paint it. You can choose the colors you want, draw anything you want and paint the picture of your dreams. For the right outcome, one needs the right set of paintbrushes, proper canvas, board, and a suitable environment. The proper support and mentorship can help an entrepreneur to focus on the primary goal.

What is Mentorship?

Today a mentor is more than a teacher or a guide. A mentor is a supporter, a friend, a helping hand, and a guide. The general conception around mentors is that entrepreneurs seek someone more learned in the same field or industry, have more experience, or support them financially. While someone with this definition is a mentor, anyone can be a mentor if we are open to learning and widening our horizons.

When you are on an entrepreneurial journey, you have to be more open to new ideas and learnings. Of course, there will be obstacles in the path, but one needs to get up, learn and get going.

Jack of All Trades but Master of One

Being an engineer by nature, my core competency lies in all things technology. I (Rajesh Kumar Subramanian) have built software and led technology teams, but when it comes to other crucial aspects of business like Sales, Marketing, Finance, and HR, I do need the support and expertise of colleagues and team members. My co-founder is my biggest mentor, support, and friend in times of crucial business decisions and vice-versa. It’s a team that makes or breaks the startup or any company. They are your strength and can give you expertise and niche advice and take the workload off.

Here’s how your mentors (team members) can lead to the successful growth of the business:

More Innovation & Creativity

When people from different fields and backgrounds come together, they bring their own set of creativity that aligns with the company's final goal. They shape the company in such a way that is fun and is abundant in ideas. The path to grow and move forward becomes more transparent and easy with the combined strength.

Increased Competitiveness

The startup world is quite competitive. Sometimes companies with enough cash flow and resources lack in the market due to a stronger team. However, having the best minds from diverse fields can make the business stand out and give it a competitive edge.

Attract Investors & Funding

Whenever an investor wants to invest in a company, the first thing they look for is how driven the team is and their aspirations. This is how they judge how well the team will be able to support or mentor the founder(s). When the team consists of strong and qualified people, even the investors are assured that their investment would be put to good use and safe hands.

Aid in Business Diversification

When entrepreneurs start a journey, they always have a plan to diversify the same into different businesses. But, to do the same, they again need the support and mentorship of a good team and investors. From marketing, sales, supply chain, production, finance to quality control, one needs strong people to help you achieve your vision and goal.

These days many young entrepreneurs start their journey just after finishing college or even before that. But, they have the drive and zeal to create a difference and build something unique. Whether young or old, we all need the right mentors by our side to achieve our goals and see our dreams unfold. They can be friends, family members, investors, seniors from the industry, or even acquaintances. Therefore, always be open to learning new things and have the right people by your side on your journey.