Mentoring Relationship Services
Business Link Kenya strongly believe that mentoring is the main tool that has made the business environment in the western world distinctive, strong and resilient to outside competition in comparison to Africa. Therefore we urge all our members to seek out a mentor privately or with the help of our team which aims to facilitate mentoring relationships for graduates, professionals and business owners using our growing network.
What is Business Mentoring?
Traditionally, the term 'mentor' might conjure up for us a picture of a 'white-haired wise man or guide'. In fact, the origins of the word mentor come from Homer's The Odyssey. Before leaving to fight the Trojan war, Odysseus left his son and his entire estate in the care of his friend Mentor, who then guided the young Telemachus as he grew up. Mentor however, was only in his early twenties!
Within a more modern context, most of us might be familiar with the concept of a business mentor within our workplace as being someone who has more experience or wisdom and is willing to share their knowledge and insights in bringing on a younger colleague, guiding their career within the company.
It is only relatively recently however, that the term mentor has broken out of the workplace and into the marketplace and the term 'business mentor' is often freely bandied around to encompass a broad range of activities and services from business angels to non-executive directors.
For our part, we are absolutely clear as to what 'business mentoring' should be - and it begins with absolute and genuine belief in the businesses we work with and their onward success. With anybody other than a professional business mentor, time and attention will always be divided amongst their own activities and the business mentors level of motivation.
Let us be in no doubt however, most successful entrepreneurs will attribute much of their achievement to the support and guidance they received from a business mentor - Richard Branson still cites the support and belief given to him by Sir Freddy Laker as being one of the key drivers behind his success within the airline industry.
Business Mentoring does not involve employing a consultant or employee to help run your business. Instead, it's a relationship between you, the Business Owner, and someone with business experience that can guide you through making the difficult decisions, point out ways of improving your business, ask you the tough questions and motivate you to want to achieve higher levels of performance, all within the bounds of a trusted relationship.
Because it's lonely at the top, business mentoring can offer you a partner in the process, a sharing of views with someone who really knows the ropes. Working with a Business Mentor will help you gain fresh insights into problems and decision making, through impartial, objective discussion and feedback.
