How to find mentors for CEOs

Throughout our careers, we often need someone to turn to for advice, whether it be a manager, colleague, or coach. As a CEO, however, there are very few people you can turn to for direct and ongoing advice as your responsibilities increase exponentially. And, well, you don’t know everything about everything. You need someone who has (or is) facing similar issues and opportunities, who has effectively handled the growth of their own business, and who can give you unvarnished and thoughtful input. 

Accessing a mentor’s knowledge can empower you to

• Define the steps toward the goal(s) you want to accomplish, like starting a company and fundraising
• Learn from their journey and identify takeaways, but determine how to do it efficiently and effectively using an approach that makes sense for you and your business

Here is my advice for CEOs on finding a mentor and making the most of that relationship once you do. 

Commit to lifelong learning

To be a successful business leader, you need to first cultivate a personal commitment to education in all its forms. Avid learners understand that while reading is incredibly valuable, direct experience and speaking with those who have been there before also holds significant weight. Being a lifelong learner means staying open to new ideas and information, which is essential for sustaining a fruitful relationship with a mentor. Forums such as fireside chats and Reddit’s Ask Me Anything (AMA) are so valuable because you can ask people questions and learn from their experiences.

Know where to look

The best strategy is to seek out and connect with CEOs further ahead on the journey. If you’re running a company with five people generating $100,000 in revenue, find someone who has built a team of 50 earning $3 million. They can educate you about the next phase of the business so you can scale it from there.  

Dig into your city’s CEO community, find out who’s involved in your startup ecosystem, and then make a personal commitment to the network and meet those people. See if your local startup community groups are hosting events for executives in your area.

It can feel uncomfortable to talk to random strangers, but they won’t be random strangers forever if you put yourself out there and form relationships. Do research, and show up with purpose and intent. Talk to people. Ask them thoughtful questions. Really listen. Never show up empty-handed. You might be surprised to learn that even the most experienced leaders will ask you questions about how you’re operating because they also want to learn something. Remember, it’s a give and take.

Be intentional 

When you’re scouting for a mentor, you need to be selective about what questions you ask and who you ask them to. CEOs often hear the same question repeatedly, even if they’ve already written or spoken about it in a blog, interview, or presentation. Do background work and make sure you’re only asking crucial questions.

Ask open-ended questions. What did you do in this scenario? How did you build that product? When it came out, what was going on behind the scenes? What will surface are the stories that will help you learn. You want to peek behind the veil to discover their thought process and how they solve problems so you can also learn what not to do. Learning from others’ mistakes and successes will allow you to shape your own path rather than replicating someone else’s. Growing and leading a business is not one-size-fits-all.

Keep it short and tight

Everyone’s busy, we know that. If you can, keep your first conversation with a potential mentor short. A half-hour Zoom call is more than acceptable! If you vibe with someone, you will want to talk to each other more. A good mentor/mentee relationship should develop organically. It’s not about owing each other anything; it’s about enjoying each other and swapping stories and strategies. 

Formalize the relationship if it makes sense

Once you find a great mentor, it’s essential that you can give energy and value back to them. In a natural mentoring relationship, it’s easy. You take knowledge from them and apply it to your life and work, but it starts by getting to know each other. Becoming friends, sharing interests, and developing an informal rapport is the ideal outcome. Speaking quarterly is a beautiful place to be. Monthly is probably too much for a new relationship. 

If your mentor is a truly valuable subject matter expert in your industry, consider giving them an advisor role in your company. Show respect for the insight they bring and give them some company stock. There’s a limit to how much advice you can expect to gain from people for free.

Being overly generous with genuine subject matter experts is a strategic thing to do for your company. It’s a worthwhile investment. As a CEO, it’s beneficial to have an advisor with ownership in your company—it incentivizes them to help when you’re dealing with a genuine problem or challenge. 

Give back when your time comes

Be a willing mentor to the next generation of business leaders. Share your experiences and insights. As a CEO, you should give back as much as possible. If you’re running a good business, people will work hard for you and give a lot of themselves to your company. Giving time and consideration back is how you rebalance that work, helping these people to grow and excel in their careers and lives. Help the next generation, because one day you will know a lot about things other people don’t know. Committing to ourselves and our communities is how we create a great tradition and continued culture of mentorship.

By Vishal Sunak, CEO and cofounder of LinkSquares