Debunking the Myth of the Lone-Wolf Entrepreneur

If you haven’t been to HP’s 367 Addison Avenue Blog, it’s a great resource for small-to-medium business owners with helpful tips, tricks and advice to help bring your business to the next level.  Melissa Zieger, the editor at 367 Addison, has been kind enough to share some of her content with us; it will be cross-posted here from time to time.  – Tina

Every now and then two of my favorite subjects appear in the same article, or blog post, so when I recently ran across a piece entitled Richard Branson on the Myth of the Lone-Wolf Entrepreneur on Entrepreneur.com, I couldn’t wait to read it. Richard Branson – Sir Richard Branson – is my business hero. The founder of the Virgin Group, which currently consists of some 360 companies, is a driven, passionate visionary, one who is at once incredibly clever and refreshingly down to earth.  The subject of the piece is also fantastic: mentoring (Richard, if you are reading this, I would love to be your next mentoring project!)

There are many lessons in the piece for entrepreneurs who are running small or medium businesses, or are considering doing so. The most important is reflected in the title; from movies to football championships to presidential elections, the individuals we actually see are just one part of the story. While glory and spotlights can be tempting, they can also be isolating. If you have an entrepreneurial streak, it’s important that you prioritize seeking out those who have had experiences from which you can learn. In fact, the more you tend to be seen as the face of your company, the higher a priority seeking out mentoring should be.

Perspective, after all, is everything.

You might be surprised at where you’ll find wisdom once you start looking. Not surprisingly, Richard Branson is surrounded by advisors and colleagues who offer him expert insight on everything from how to best merchandise music to how to keep in-flight menu offerings seasonal on a route system that crosses both hemispheres.

But what about you? Chances are you’re not at the helm of a 360-company conglomerate that spans every continent and probably every country on earth. Still, you may be surprised at how rich the resources at your fingertips are once you switch into mentorship mode. Simply ask yourself who has something to teach you, something from which you can learn? Tap into former professors, colleagues, and managers. What about people you’ve encountered in your community, whether in a civic realm or a business association, whose expertise may be perfectly complementary to yours even if the industry in which they work is not? Heck, maybe it’s your genius neighbor.

If you have an insight on how and where you’ve found your best mentors during your career, please share them. To get the conversation started, I thought it was interesting that Richard Branson revealed the identity of his first mentor in the article. While it didn’t surprise me, it may surprise some to learn that his first mentor was his mother.

Thanks for reading,

Melissa Zieger

Melissa Zieger (@HP_SmallBiz) is the editor-in-chief of HP's SMB blog, 367 Addison Avenue and a worldwide public relations manager for HP's Personal Systems Group.