Tips on finding a mentor? (19)
Hello!
I would like to kick this one off with a nice video I found from Jack Canfield on finding a mentor:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEPtqx90grI
So, here's the deal. Just a couple of weeks ago I met with this very successful man in my country at his home. To say it was it was beautiful would be a little bit of an understatement: 2 houses, each having 3 floors. A library custom-made from mahogany. Two sports cars. Super expensive plot at a very prestigious area. And so on...
Well, this person pointed out to me that one of my weaknesses is the fact that I've always tried to do things on my own. He said that this is definitely costing me my success.
I would LOVE to be mentored by this man, but he's working on a totally unrelated industry to mine. He's effectively internet-illiterate, so he wouldn't be the best person to mentor on topics like seen on this forum.
So, I was just curious to hear how some of the more successful guys here have been able to find a mentor for themselves?
The more I've been thinking about it, the more I've come to realize that I most certainly need one. However, I believe in what Napoleon Hill said about "there's no such reality as something for nothing". Therefore, I'm most interested in finding some creative ways to create value for someone who's waaaay ahead of me. How did you guys start giving when it seemed like you don't have much to give (especially money-wise)?
This thread might help many people down the line as well, so feel free to shoot away with all the tips you have!
PS: Here's how I essentially got invited to this successful persons house: I've been sending him book gifts every now and then. I read a lot and I know he reads a lot, so whenever I've stumbled upon a book I know he would like, I just bought the book and sent it over to him, along with a letter on the key points of the book and why I think he would enjoy reading it 
Why limit yourself to internet monies? If whatever he does remotely interests you, then get involved..
I remember watching a TedEx on this topic. To summarize, the speaker suggested to 1) pick the field you're interested in 2) identify core skills needed to succeed in this business 3) invest time and money in achieving these skills 4) offer a 1,2 month free internship to top guys in the field in exchange of a possibility of a real job later on 5) prove yourself 6) $$$
@virosh, that's a valid point I've been thinking about. He's doing a lot of coaching and other stuff, which indeed is interesting. However, affiliate marketing feels even more interesting to me
Great those other points as well, thanks!
It really depends on how much money you're currently making and how much you want to make.
I have had a one-on-one coach that costed me high 4 figures because I already made some money but wanted to grow.
Having a coach is great, but you still have to do the work yourself.
So what would you like to pay for coaching and what do you expect of it?
bring lots of books to london 2015...
I got mentor only after I hit decent numbers so I cant really help with this..
I have a friend who runs a pretty big internet marketing firm (~$50mm run rate), by all reasonable measurements he's doing very well, but he still pays a former top CEO in a completely irrelevant industry $3000/week to come in one day each week and coach him on what he's doing wrong, what he's doing right, and how he can help make his company a better one for the future. I personally don't have a reliable mentor, and I think it's hurt me in my growth quite a bit (I'm actively working on this, though I'm not trying to pay for one, I'm going a different route).
The point being that it's not entirely necessary that your mentor/coach have domain knowledge in your space -- there are much bigger points to "business" that are universal and would probably help you a lot -- the ROI% on a cost to a good coach is going be very high if you're a good mentee.
Originally Posted by joshogle
E.g,
earning 4k/month, find someone doing better and pay them $500 for a coaching session(s)
earning 10k/month, find someone doing better and pay them $1000 for a coaching session(s)
earning 30k/month, find someone doing better and pay them $5000 for a coaching session(s)
I've been thinking of it here and there but AM is a pretty secretive business so i'm stumped as well when it comes to finding a 1-1 coach.
Originally Posted by joshogle
Hasn't affiliate marketing taught you to think outside the box? Clearly it did, because this is what got you into his home in the first place. Now take the next step.
I've had two mentors so far in my career. My first one had no relation really to what I wanted to do. The second one, my current one, is in the same field. Let me focus on the one that isn't in this industry, because it relates more to your question.
I never met this guy in person. I was referred to him through a common friend. We skyped a lot, but never ended up meeting in person because he's lived quite far away. Why did he take me on? Did I as a university graduate have anything to offer to him? Certainly not money, not much else you might think.
Point being, most mentors are definitely not after the money in a mentor-mentee relationship. They do it because they like to be inspired (hello, your book recommendations...), sometimes there's an age gap and they try to stay "up to date" with what the new generation does (think technology). Sometimes they just want to give back - or want to pass on knowledge to leave a legacy behind (not just a materialistic one). They too like to inspire people.
Now does it matter if he's in the same filed? Of course it doesn't. He's there to inspire, motivate you, and funnel your energy. With him you have someone for the broad picture, life lessons/advice, social skills - in sum, all the stuff you CANNOT buy for money (or at least shouldn't be).
Is he going to be your full-time go-to person? No, obviously not because he will be busy with his own projects. But I can guarantee you he won't be offended if you ask him to be your mentor, IF you come prepared.
Be prepared for when you ask, or don't ask at all. Good luck!
Wow, great points in this thread! Thank you everyone for chiming in!
I have been very reluctant on accepting clients, as I somehow think it doesn't make a lot of business sense to chain myself into an array of clients. I think it's kind of like having another job: someone else gives you an ass to kiss, and then they can throw you out anyway whenever they want to. That's the reason I got interested in AM, and online marketing in general.
However, I do need to get some money coming in. I have 1 client at the moment, but I decided I'm going to get at least a couple more so that I got the basics covered.
The opinions in this thread have certainly given me some new thoughts to chew on. This person told me that he knows several millionaires, who started out as being his assistants. I can certainly see how that's possible. Maybe I need to rethink this in a big way, and just jump in on the opportunity and try to help him the best way I can.
Oh yeah, and I'm definitely looking forward to meet all you awesome people in London next year!
Here's a great post by STM Thought Leader Dr_Ngo on this very topic:
http://charlesngo.com/networkingtips/
Hello Everyone!
I am looking for a mentor.
I just signed up for the one month trial
with
I have been reading and learning, but it's easier
with a mentor, faster. My head is spinning.
Can someone please help?
Thank you
To be in a position to really benefit from a mentor, you should at least understand the basics/fundamentals of affiliate marketing.
A mentor should not be there to answer questions about how to set up tracking, what networks to join, which banner sizes are better, etc. Simply put, if they are a worthwhile mentor, these kinds of questions will be an waste of their time.
So, for now I'd recommend just coming to grips with forum content, reading for weeks, writing notes, etc., so that you can get to a point where you know more specifically what you actually need a mentor for.
It's a good point.
To turn the question.
What stage should you be at and what should you be asking a mentor?
Firstly - I can't recommend coaching, in any form, enough. I've had coaches in a number of areas of business and hobbies, and they've always made a huge difference. There have been a number of studies on this too, showing that coaching is startlingly effective for people operating at any level, as joshogle says.
@nt2000 - my personal feeling would be that you can benefit from coaching at any level. However, there may not be coaches available at all levels, at least at a cost-effective price! Hence why it's probably best to get through the stuff that's easier to learn from text first.
Originally Posted by caurmen
What sort of thing would a mentor help you with once you've got over the basics?
Surely all of it can be found in text somewhere or some degree on stm?
@nt2000 - The major thing I find having a mentor / coach helps with is knocking you out of your existing patterns of thinking.
When reading guides, you can't help but filter them through your existing preconceptions and modes of operation. Working with a coach he or she will actually spot those and challenge them, forcing you out of your normal operation modes and into new ways of thinking.
Also, they'll give you a second pair of experienced eyes on a specific situation, as opposed to general advice. I recall, for example, my marketing coach (yes, I have a marketing coach) was able to look at one business I was developing and immediately say "nope, that's a bad idea", based on their unique understanding of the situation.
They can also suggest new things that you may have considered but rejected instinctively - which can otherwise be very very hard to debug, because you're not really consciously aware of them. I have a coach for the computer game Hearthstone at the moment (a hobby I decided to get good at), and he's pushed me to playing in a style that I'd instictively rejected and hadn't even realised that I'd done so - but that works very well for me.
Working with very experienced peers can give you a lot of this too. I've learned a lot and had the way I think challenged and improved massively by working with MrGreen, Stackman, bbrock32, Zeno, cmdeal and others on this forum.
Originally Posted by caurmen
Yes being challenged on why you are doing things is very important. The act itself won't give you the answers but it
makes you think more about the process, most people possibly find the answer themselves. Being knocked out of those existing preconceptions is probably where a lot of people reach that next level and avoid being stuck in a rut.
Although to some degree you always want to feel a little like a beginner else you can't develop to get even better. So at what stage in am do you reach the need for a mentor is it once you've got over tracking and setup issues (does that ever happen?!) Or once you hit a couple of profitable campaigns?
"Beginner's Mind" is really important, as you say, no matter what level you get to.
I don't think you ever need a mentor for AM - most super-affiliates haven't had one. And as I say, a coach or mentor is useful at any level.
But probably the time when a coach/mentor/advisor of some kind will be most useful, IMO, is after you've cracked the "binary problems" - "does tracking work?", "am I getting any conversions?" - and you're starting to need to lean heavily on the soft skills of design, copywriting and optimisation.
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