Help! Where do I find a mentor?

madelinemckay·Jan 08, 2024

Posted in:Advice

I am very interested in building my own start-up but I often feel so overwhelmed and paralyzed that I don't know where to start. I would love to be able to talk to someone who owns their own business who might be able to guide me on how to get started. Or if there are any websites/meet-ups that I could go to - any adivce would be helpful!

Some background - I am a growth marketing manager who lives in NYC.

teresaman·Jan 08

I've recommended this platform several times on Elpha, so this may be a good fit for you! Merit is started by my friend (also in NY) as a mentorship platform for people in tech. It's free and you can browse mentor's profiles to see what's the best fit for you. Check it out here: https://www.get-merit.com/

oaladeselu·Jan 08

Nothing startup specific but I second merit as well. You can also connect with someone on https://www.score.org/ for advice, I wouldn't say mentorship though. Also...https://adplist.org/ is another I give it 50/50https://mentorcruise.com/filter/startup/LinkedIn for cold outreachIf you have a strong personal network, ask.

annieli·Jan 08

Adding The Mentoring Club to the list: https://www.mentoring-club.com/ It's a non-profit and is completely free to use, I had 3 mentoring calls with mentors on this platform, and one of them happened to be a great fit for the specific challenges I was facing, he is really nice and it's been 2 years since the call and we're still in touch

Iynna·Jan 08

Maybe YC startup school https://www.startupschool.org/? And in NYC there's so many meetups for founders so you're in the right city for it. If you are building smth AI related, check out AI Furnace and meet @angelamascarenas she's wonderful!!

ninaynt·Jan 09

Hi @madelinemckay - it's totally normal and understandable that starting a business feels so overwhelming! There are so many things involved in operating a business. But kudos to you for having the courage and ambition to start your own!In terms of finding mentors, in addition to the great resources others have shared, I'd recommend you first clarify with yourself "what exactly are you seeking advice for?". Are you looking for current business owners (founder, co-founder, solopreneur, etc)? Are you looking for owner of specific industries or product market? Are you looking for owner with a similar background as yours (i.e. marketing)? By being specifics and sharing these questions upfront, it can help you narrow down the profile of people you can outreach directly, or help others respond to your questions more easily. Good luck!

SamanthaChai·Jan 09

I did https://fasttrack.firstround.com/ and it was amazing. I got paired with an awesome mentor, and it was totally free. We were such a personality match that I had no idea what was coming. If you can, absolutely try to get into this program.