Top Three Mentors Every Work at Home Woman Needs Today

Work at Home Woman you need a mentor. Actually, you need three mentors.

As amazing as the freedom and flexibility is, working from home can be isolating for your business and career unless you make the effort to continue to learn and grow.

A Mentor can help you learn and grow.

Mentors bring outside perspective to your business. And you can use the lessons your mentors have learned as a guide for your own business.

I know three mentors might sound a little overwhelming. Three people is a lot of calls, coffee and accountability to keep up with.

The great news is the three mentor I’m going to talk about today are virtual mentors. And by virtual I don’t mean a Business Coach or a Mastermind leader that you meet with on a video call.

I’m getting a little ahead of myself.

Have you ever asked yourself what kind of mentor do you need?

Let’s identify the top three mentors you need and then we can talk about how to find them.

Top Three Mentors Every Work at Home Woman Needs Today

When you stop and think about your work goals and personal goals, I bet you have a lot of competing priorities.

And that makes sense to me. You aren’t a one-note band. You are a multi-tasking queen.

Not only do you have competing priorities, but I bet you want to excel at all of them.

Or, maybe you are more like me, just trying to keep up and keep all of the things moving forward.

And because you have so many different balls in the air you need different mentors. You need to develop ALL the parts of you.

The top three types of mentors you need as a work from home woman include

1. A mentor in your primary business field.
2. An innovative business entrepreneurial mentor in any field except yours for perspective and balance.
3. A Personal or Professional Development mentor. YOU must grow for your business to grow.

And that brings us to the most difficult task. Where do you find these three mentors?

How to find Mentors When you Work at Home

If you are lucky enough to have all three of these mentors in your life you are extremely lucky!

But if you are anything like me you have one or two of them but not all three.

This is where we could stop, and I could give you a talk about the importance of business relationships and the basics of business networking. But I’ll let you read about that in other posts I’ve written about creating networking opportunities.

The reality is sometimes the mentors we want and desperately need are not available in our local area or within our network.

So where DO you find a mentor when you your options are limited and you work at home?

Virtual Mentors

I first heard about this idea, a virtual mentor, from one of the most successful female entrepreneurs in my community.

This woman, while she had a 15mo old at home, walked away from a fantastic job because she wanted more.

She wanted to own and operate her own businesses.

She started and grew her business in a traditional southern community that did not have strong female role models. But she didn’t let that stop her. Today her company is on Inc.’s 5000 Fastest Growing Companies list.

So where did she find her mentors? In books, on TV and the internet.

1. Choose a Mentor in Your Industry

You might be wondering how to pick this virtual mentor. You start by brainstorming who the biggest names are in your industry that are innovative and who’s core company values mirror yours.

If you are in the media industry Oprah would be a fantastic mentor. In the Lifestyle industry Martha Stewart comes to mind (minus that stint in prison!.)

How cool would it be to have either of these women as you mentor?!

If you are in the technology industry how about Steve Jobs, Susan Wojcicki or Mark Zuckerberg.

Read their biography, read what other people have written about them. Study their climb and their failures as lessons for your own business.

If you have a blog or a podcast you have tons of options! Pick one blogger or podcaster to be your industry mentor. Then listen to every interview they have recorded, read their books and subscribe to their newsletters.

Or, if you are a freelance writer how about choosing a writer like J.K Rolling? The story of her dedication and subsequent success is amazing!

2. Choose an Innovative Entrepreneur Mentor Not in Your Industry

The woman I mentioned who I first heard the idea of a virtual mentor from chose Walt Disney as her mentor not in her industry. He created the Happiest Place on Earth and that’s what she wanted for her company. A joyful place for her, her employees and clients.

Today we have unlimited options of truly innovative entrepreneurs including Jeff Bezos, Richard Branson, Sheryl Sandberg, Sara Blakeley, Estee Lauder and Vera Wang.

Then there is the whole cast of Shark Tank!

I had the opportunity to hear Daymond John speak at a symposium I attended. His story is powerful and I have looked at business differently every day since.

This is your opportunity to dig deep. If you could meet one amazing and innovative entrepreneur (alive or dead) who would it be?

Why would you pick them?

What would you ask them?

Answer those three questions then dive into their story and start learning from one of the very best.

3. Choose a Personal or Professional Development Mentor

Choosing a personal or professional Development Mentor is extremely important. At the end of the day you are your business. Your business can only grow if you do.

Do not skip this one!

The opportunities for this mentor can almost be overwhelming. I encourage you to spend time thinking about who you are now as and who you want to become.

If at your core service defines you take a look through the Nobel peace prize winners.

If becoming a great leader is what drives you toward your big goal consider top CEOs such as Warren Buffett, Meg Whitman or Bill Gatez.

Or think about a female leader who has had the most impact on you so far and allow her journey to be your constant inspiration.

If you are struggling with choosing a personal or business development virtual mentor Oprah, Melinda Gates and Condoleezza Rice are inspiring women to start with.

Read or listen to their biographies, immerse yourself in their stories.

As your business grows your personal and professional development needs change. It’s okay of this virtual mentor change with you.

Conclusion

As a work from home woman you must have mentors.

As amazing as the freedom and flexibility is, working from home can be isolating for your business and career if you don’t make an effort to connect with others.

The top three virtual mentors every work from home woman needs are a mentor in your primary business field, an innovative business entrepreneurial mentor in any field except yours AND a Personal or Professional Development mentor.

With the volume of information available in books, podcasts, on TV and the internet you can learn and connect virtually and creating a network of amazingly innovative and successful entrepreneurs as mentors.

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