Here's the thing: what it's like to mentor with me

A few weeks ago, I was on a call with a client who asked whether she was using the time “correctly”, whether she was like other clients in her worries, questions, progress.

My first reaction was: it really doesn’t matter. If this is right for you, this is what we’ll talk about.

So we carried on. And then someone else asked me what it was like to mentor with other people, too. So, I figured it’s probably time to spill the beans.

This week’s blog post is an open letter to all current and future mentoring clients about what it’s like to mentor with me.

• You bring lots of worries, thoughts and ideas – I listen and try to identify the most important bits.
• We talk about everything – products, marketing, websites, branding, pricing, suppliers, social media, colleagues, business, family, weather, food, tea, rest, meditation, books. Everything is on the table.
• We talk about feelings as well as practical stuff, and I usually add a to do list for the week which can include anything from uploading a product to researching a supplier to getting an early night. Sometimes it includes throwing out everything that was already on your to do list.
• We repeat things on a week to week basis – sometimes we spend weeks talking about the same thing before it feels like we’ve made progress. This is entirely normal, and to be expected, as we realign your business practice and create new habits and ways of thinking.
• Time management is always a thing – always.
• I will encourage you to use (make you use) spreadsheets. Resistance is futile.
• We usually end up with a shared, secret Pinterest board to share ideas for branding, photography and projects. This is one of my favourite parts of the job.
• Typically, you need as much encouragement as I can fit into a call. It’s okay to need real reassurance from someone you can trust.
• You can ask for what you need – nothing is off-limits to talk about, but I might point you in a different direction for better help where relevant.
• I am an excellent secret-keeper. Several clients have shared news with me long before anyone else, because I’m here to help plan for change.
• There will be moments of silence as I scribble down notes. I’ll ask you to repeat things, or say more about something, so that I really feel like I know what you’re worrying or thinking about.
• I’ll give you options, suggestions, choices. It’s up to you to take them.

Here’s the thing

There’s no right way to run a business. Yes, some of the things I work with clients on (like getting your pricing to work for you) are business essentials. But a lot of the time, we talk through questions that are varied, multi-level and complex. The places where you can’t see the wood for the trees. I help you see the wood.

If I had one message for all my clients or anyone who feels they it, this would be it:

It’s okay to need reassurance, and it’s okay to feel like you’re stepping into the unknown. You are. And it’s amazing.