Every Great Sales Professional Has a Great Mentor. — And How You Can Find One!

Becoming a Better Sales Rep — Post #25

Introduction

I know many people working in various sales roles at various companies. Some of them have just started out at a large firm, some of them have grown startups to $ 100 million in Annual Reorccuring Revenue. Some of them love sales, some of them do it because it’s necessary.

But I noticed that all of them — who are making continuous progress and deliver great results — have one thing in common:

All great salespeople have great mentors.

Let’s take a look at why it’s important to have a sales mentor, what characteristics to look for, and how to find them.

Photo by krakenimages on Unsplash

The Benefits of Having a Mentor

The benefits of having a mentor are literally countless. So, don’t assume that this list is complete. You can come up with so many more reasons. And, in the end, the most important reasons are very personal. But, let’s take a look at some rather objective reasons why you should really consider getting a mentor.

And, how it’s gonna make you close more deals, of course. (;

1. You’ll Reach Your Goals Faster: Just by having someone who helps you streamline your development, you’ll have some guidance to stay on a great track to achieve your goals. This doesn’t mean that you can’t or shouldn’t disagree with your mentor. They might also be wrong at times. However, overall, they’ll certainly help you to stay on track with your goals.
2. You’ll Save a Lot of Time: Do you know that feeling when you spend hours on end on something? You’re thinking about it and you’re trying to figure it out? But, you either can’t find the right piece of information, or you’re having a creative block or whatever else. Well, chances are that your mentor has already resolved this issue in the past or they just have a fresh mindset on an issue that you’ve been thinking about for too long. Just being able to ask your mentor for directions might make a big difference and save you a lot of time. Don’t get me wrong tho, you’ll still need to do the work!
3. You’ll Avoid Unnecessary Mistakes: I really loved a quote I heard from a friend of mine who leads a large sales team at an uprising Indian company: “Life is too short to only learn from your own mistakes.” And, he’s so right. By tapping into the brains of your mentor, it’s likely that they’ve themselves made or seen other people make mistakes over the years. So, just by actively listening to their advice, you’ll be able to avoid them.
4. You’ll Be More Creative: Mentors provide you with a safe space because at the core of your relationship lies the common understanding that they’re committed to helping you grow. And, there is no growth without mistakes. Mistakes are crucial in a creative workflow. And sales is creative work. You need to come up with new strategies, wordings, presentations, solutions to unique client requests, and so much more. But, rather than holding yourself back from suggesting a really interesting solution just because you’re afraid that it’s stupid, you can discuss it with your mentor. They might still tell you that you shouldn’t do it. But then you can think about what else to do. Or, they’ll tell you that it’s genius and help you develop it further.
5. You’ll Learn How to Become a Leader: In the end, you’re most likely reading this blog post because you’re committed to becoming a better sales professional. This is probably why you’re interested in the topic of having a mentor. And, when chasing your dreams and putting in the work, you do grow. And, if your commitment is continuous, you’ll develop great mentorship skills yourself because you’ll have first-hand experiences with how effective they have been on you. So, you can also view mentorship as great training for being a sales leader yourself one day!
6. You’ll Have a Strong Advocate for Yourself: If someone agrees to be your mentor, they’ll care about you. (And, if they don’t, they’re not your mentor. Find a new one!) However, assuming that they do, you’ll have an advocate on your side. If your mentor is someone higher up within your company, they’ll advocate for you to get a promotion or will stand up if you make a big mistake. They’ll explain things on your behalf and will help you resolve things that you might otherwise not be powerful enough to do on your own.

So, with this knowledge, let’s take a look at what characteristics all great mentors have in common.

Photo by Glenn Carstens-Peters on Unsplash

Characteristics of Great Mentors

All my mentors were unique and they need to be. My theater mentors are vastly different from my sales mentors. And my sales mentors are vastly different from my friends who help me with things in my personal life.

But, I can assure you that all of them have the following traits because they’re absolutely crucial. So, make sure to check off all of them when choosing a mentor!

1. Listening: First and foremost, great mentors don’t tell you what to do. They work with you to figure out what’s bothering you and they take in everything you say to help you find your unique way.
2. Interest: Great mentors are truly interested in who you are and how to help you. Their interest allows them to focus on helping you to find the best solutions for yourself. And, they help you focus on what is the best and most important for you in the most objective way possible. Great mentors don’t have a one-fits-all solution because they know that for you to be able to accept their help, their ideas and concepts must resonate with you.
3. Experience: It’s obvious but it needs to be on the list: For a fruitful relationship, your mentor needs to have more experience in your field of growth and/or a useful but different perspective on the things you need help with. Your mentor doesn’t need to be doing sales and they don’t need to be at your company. However, in most cases, it helps!
4. Honesty: Great mentors are honest; in two ways. First, they tell you the hard things you need to hear. They do it in a respectful way but they also don’t fear telling you something that might hurt you if you need to hear it. On the other hand, they’re honest about themselves. Mentors will have more experience than you but they won’t know everything. And, if they don’t know something, they don’t bullshit you, they tell you.
5. Reflectiveness: Overall, great mentors have mentors themselves. They know and appreciate mentorship and want to give back because they experienced the value of it themselves. They reflect and they help you reflect.
6. Acceptance: Great mentors accept that you have your flaws and help you accept this as well. Yes, you want to be better but you’ll never be perfect. And, this is what your relationship is about. Working on being a better version of yourself, not to be perfect.
7. Patience: Great mentors are patient. They see all the things that you could do better, but they only tell you about one or two of them at a time. They deploy them over time and help you stay focused on the most important things. And, they understand that you need time to really incorporate advice.

Similar to the reasons why you should consider seeking a mentor, there’s way more characteristic of great mentors. And, overall, their characteristics need to be important to and resonant with you. Someone might like directness, somebody else might appreciate careful comments. Someone might like a formal setting, someone else wants their mentor to be like a buddy. Whatever it is, your mentor needs to be right for you!

So, let’s take a look at how to find the right mentor for you!

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How to Find a Mentor

There are multiple ways to find mentors. And, I’m sure that there’s more than I’m listing. Just view this list as a point to start. Because that’s the hardest thing: getting started. Once you’re at it, you’ll certainly find additional tactics or sources for mentors.

1. Your Company Assigns Mentors: Well, this one is easy. Some companies just assign mentors. However, there’s the risk that you and your mentor don’t get along for some reason. If they’re not a good fit, address it, but do it in a respectful way! If you can’t get another mentor, don’t disregard the idea of mentors, try to find a real additional mentor outside of the formal program!
2. Approach People In Your Company Directly: When Steve Jobs was 12, he once famously called Bill Hewlett of HP and asked him if he had a few spare computer parts because he was building something. To everybody’s surprise, Hewlett gave him the parts and offered him a summer high school internship at HP. Jobs had just found Hewlett’s number in the telephone book and decided to give him a ring. The message here is that most people are more willing to help than you think. There’s no harm in asking. The worst thing that could happen is that they say no. Don’t worry, they won’t be mean about it.
3. Ask Your Colleagues If They Could Suggest Anyone: If you’re new at your company or you simply don’t know many people (maybe you started in a remote environment), ask your colleagues. Tell them that you’re looking for a mentor and ask them if they know of anybody. The additional benefit of this is that people will match you with potential mentors that they believe are similar to you. So, you’ll get an additional perspective on finding the right mentor for you specifically.
4. Approach People on LinkedIn or Other Social Media: Similar to the Steve Jobs story from above, you’d be surprised how helpful people are. Just reaching out to some people whose profiles are inspiring to you might do the trick. I try to reach out to at least one or two people every month and just have a conversation with the purpose of learning. People barely ever say no. And if they do, nothing bad ever happens. I just reach out to the next one.

Photo by Brett Jordan on Unsplash

Starting the Mentorship

If you found someone who’s willing to have a conversation with you or even better, someone immediately agreed to be a mentor, that’s amazing. Now, make sure that you’ll kick it off with a great start:

1. Know What You’re Asking For While Being Flexible: Your asking for their mentorship, so be prepared to take the lead on how you envision this. Be prepared. But, also, be ready to change things. If you suggest meeting once every two weeks, but they can only offer you an hour a month, be flexible if it still fits your need.
2. Define the Mentorship: Together, you’ll need to define what the mentorship entails, how often you meet, what to focus on, and so on.
3. Make Sure You Both Commit: This entails that they commit to helping you. They need to make mentoring you a priority. Continuous rescheduling or not answering your emails won’t do the trick. On the other side, you also have a responsibility to act based on your conversations. Don’t come back to your next meeting without having tried to implement their feedback.
4. Make Sure It’s the Right Fit: And, always make sure that this is a great mutual fit! Both of you need to enjoy the relationship and understand each other’s way of thinking.

Now, enjoy your weekend and if you can find a moment, think about who might be a great mentor for you!

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About the Author

Teddy Lange is a co-founder at Resonaid and is responsible for business development and customer experience. Before joining Resonaid, he’s been a Sales Rep and Junior Sales Manager, and co-founded various companies. He’s currently finishing his graduate degree in Public Policy with a focus on communication at Harvard University. Feel free to reach out to him at teddy@resonaid.co.