Whether you want to move up in your company, or establish a solid business, a mentor can make a significant difference. And we can have many mentors. Over the years, I have gotten some precious advice from my mentors. This may sound simple, but it is powerful! No matter what line of business you are in, you need a coach—someone you talk with about your failures and successes; someone who can advice you. How to find a mentor? Just ASK!

People normally love to talk about their successes and how they accomplished them. They are eager to help us if we courteously ask them. For many years I failed to put in practice the old advice in the bible: “Ask and ye shall receive.” Don’t let that happen to you…ASK!

Always remember the two most powerful words in any language: THANK YOU AND PLEASE. Use those two words a lot with your mentor. Send little gifts and thank you cards to them in order to show how much you appreciate their investment in you. Occasionally when you ask someone to be your coach, you might get a no. Don’t take it personally; it only means that timing is not on your side. Don’t delay. Look for a mentor NOW!      

4) Attend The Night Classes

The late Cavett Robert, founder of the National Speakers Association, often used to say, “school is never out for the pros.” What a wonderful statement! The experts even tell us that every seven years our knowledge becomes worthless. That means a person who was worth twenty thousand dollars as an employee seven years ago, today is worth probably five thousand dollars or less. Here’s why.

Our minds are like leaky buckets; what we know is constantly dripping out. I read a story about a man who was working for a company for about twenty years. But it seems like they always pass over him for a promotion.