Recently, my team and I ran a survey, specifically asking female solopreneurs what was the #1 biggest challenge in their business and personal lives, right now.
The answers were stunning! Do you know what they told us -- right across the board? Inside of citing business-specific issues,
they uniformly asked where they could get the help and support that they needed, to figure out what they should be doing in life and how to do that to their (and the world's) best advantage --particularly in these challenging times.
Further, in the comments section, we got things like:
• I have invested thousands of dollars in courses, books, and tapes -- and I still don't know who I am or what I should be doing!
• I have made a conscious effort toward self-improvement by following other successful people and now I'm totally overwhelmed with their emails, offers, etc.
• It seems that everybody calls themselves a "coach." How do I know who and what is the best use of my time and money?
I hate to admit it, but I'm old enough to remember when people first came out calling themselves life and business coaches. We all thought they were into football, baseball or Little League! Those were the only coaches we had heard of.
Today, there are tens of thousands of legitimate (and not) coaches and as you may have already discovered, it can be difficult to figure out if one of them might be right for you. Basically, anyone with a good copywriter writing their ads and offers, can sound pretty good.
As I was pondering this, I received my good friend, Bonnie Hutchinson's weekly ezine. In this week's issue, she talked about how when she really needed help at home, her cleaning lady, Iris, came into her life. Wow, did that ever resonate with me!
Similarly, about four years ago now, our housekeeper, Rita, came into our lives. I love a clean house, but I hate doing housework! Obviously there were many individuals and companies who could have cleaned our house. So how did I eventually find the right one? I asked people I knew and trusted, who they used. I interviewed a few individuals and hands-down, my best choice was Rita. She has been with us through thick and thin and now is our trusted house and animal sitter, when we travel. She has become an integral part of my support, that allows me to be more effective in what I love to do.
If you feel stuck in uncertainty about what you're doing, it is unlikely that you will be able to look at your situation objectively and know what changes to make. As one of my current mentoring team recently said to me, "Karen, I can fly at 30,000 feet and see a lot more about you and your business, than you can when you're on the ground." And sure enough, she came up with suggestions I hadn't even considered -- not in my wildest dreams!
The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines a mentor as "a trusted counselor or guide." For a mentor to be effective for you, here are some "musts" for you to consider:
1. Don't try to follow too many people. Pick one and immerse yourself in her teachings.That doesn't mean you'll just have one mentor forever -- just be sure to stick with one at a time.
2. You have to have personal access to them. Engage them to work with you -- don't just be following them from afar.
3. Is the person you're considering following, walking her talk? A lot of programs can look good in theory but what does her life look like?
4. Does your mentor have a mentor herself? Don't put your future in someone's hands who isn't constantly growing herself.
5. The Master Key: do you click and connect with this person? Does she instill in you, the trust that is necessary for you both to move forward together? Once you've done your research and got all your questions answered, then trust your gut.
So, what does this all have to do with being a millionaire?
Ask almost any successful person -- whether they are in the arts, athletics, business, philanthropic ventures -- what made them who they are today, and they will tell you that they had a strong role model, mentor, or someone they looked up to. Think Richard Branson or Oprah. So why should you be any different?
Sadly, it has only been fairly recently that female role models have emerged for those of us in business -- and specifically, who are solopreneurs, to follow. So, if you're serious about becoming everything that you were meant to be, find yourself a great mentor.
Are they free? No -- like anything else, you get what you pay for but here's a different way to look at paying someone to support you: a college education today can cost anywhere from $30,000 to several hundred thousand dollars. Most people don't think twice about that. Why is it any different to think of investing (usually much less than that) in yourself and what will contribute greatly to your financial and emotional wealth?
©2009 Karen Dodd International
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