Be prepared when seeking mentor’s advice-A few minutes of organization can mean a big payback

How often have you sought advice from someone only to come away disappointed that you received nothing of value? Expectations of helpful guidance turned to another session of discouraging commentary.

By Gary Williams
Brigham Young University

Maybe the fault is partially yours and not entirely your mentor’s. An all-too-typical scenario for a mentoring session goes something like this: You arrive at the meeting with many questions and concerns. You are unstructured in the development of your thoughts and do a poor job of articulating the issues. Then you forget to ask the most important question.

The result: frustration for all concerned.

I suggest that you take a few minutes prior to your mentoring session to organize a short synopsis of your ideas and important issues. In your summary, highlight the key components of your business, including the product/service, customers, competitors, key managers and risks.

The following outline will help in organizing your information:

* Start with an "Elevator Speech." This is a summary short enough to be made in the time that it takes to travel 15 floors in an elevator, a two- or three-sentence summary of your idea, market and team. This short introduction will help mentors set the context for your meeting and quickly orient them to your business concept. It is also useful to develop a concise summary of your idea for those times when you only have a couple of minutes to catch someone’s attention.

* A summary of your market/customers/product. Is the market large enough to support your business? To whom will you sell? Why will they buy? What are you proposing to sell? How? What problem does your product or service solve?

* A review of your business concept. Where does your revenue come from? What are the key cost components? How will you make a profit and/or survive?
What is your competitive advantage? Why is your idea and team better than the competition? How will you differentiate yourself in the marketplace?

* A description of key employees. This should include short descriptions of the key employees’ backgrounds and experiences. List any deficits that you have in your key positions.

* Assessment of risks. What external and internal risks exist? How will you address the downside risk? How will you manage the upside risks? Swings in both directions can impact the success of your business.

The summary should be three pages or less. This short document will allow the mentor to gain an understanding of the business in just a few minutes.

From a mentor’s perspective, nothing is more frustrating than arranging for the time to meet with an entrepreneurial team that has not prepared for the session. Often, entrepreneurs are so anxious to find the answer to a specific question that they open with the issue before introducing the mentor to the company.

A few minutes of organization can produce a big payback. I have often heard entrepreneurs comment that the insight received during a mentoring session made a significant impact on the success of their businesses. But you have to be well-prepared to take full advantage of the opportunity.

Gary Williams is associated with the BYU Center for Entrepreneurship. He can be reached via e-mail at [email protected].

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