Mentors and Mentees

I'm on Ben Casnocha's email newsletter list and was interested to read his thoughts on how to be a good "Mentee". Ben made a great point that for a mentor to feel like their time and effort is worth giving the mentee has to show that they are people that can be coached. However, he rightly points out that the kind of people who will risk everything on a startup are typically very headstrong, self-confident, and aggressive. This creates a fine line to walk on b/c well intentioned mentors may find the mentee push back on advice given, and therefore seem to reject the mentor's gift. I can tell you that this is something that I constantly struggle with as an entrepreneur. I ask for advice, but then get very frustrated with what I perceive to be overly conservative responses. Or, I ask for feedback on our business plan and financials and then get tasked with more work to further clarify what seems to me to be ridiculously clear. I ask for honest advice and feedback...I just want it to reflect what I'm already thinking. Probably not the best model for a successful relationship.

Anyhow, I am aware of the problem and continue to work on my shortcomings as a mentee. One of our advisors in particular has given us huge amounts of time and advice on our business plan and financials, and I must admit that I have been less than the ideal mentee to work with. However, I have complied with his requests to tighten up the plan and financials if for no other reason than to make sure he feels that his feedback is being heard and acted on. Maybe this will be the start of being a better mentee.

With all that said, I would like to thank all of our advisors for their generosity in helping us startup and succeed. I hope that one day I can return the favour.