How to Get a Shark as Your Mentor

Do you remember who your first mentor was in your life?

My dad was my first mentor. Growing up in the Ice Business, he showed me the importance of hard work, how to build customer relationships, and getting the sale. He would always share valuable tips with me about life and how to find success in business.

As I got older I started to really understand the power of a mentor and how it can excel your business forward and eliminate mistakes along the way. My second mentor, I found in college while attending a guest speaker event. His name was Cactus Jack Barringer, a world-renowned inventor that made millions through his ideas that he launched on the market. He was a great asset to me as I took my own invention, Arctic Stick to market.

That experience allowed me to see the full potential and value of a mentor and how it can supercharge your business. The right mentor will give you the competitive edge you need to find success faster in your own desired area of expertise.

“Find someone who has already achieved what you want to achieve and have them show you how to get there on your own path in life”

3 Reasons Why You Need a Mentor

1.) They Save you Money

As an entrepreneur, you want to minimize your mistakes as much as possible. Mistakes usually mean time and money wasted going down a path you shouldn’t have gone down. Having the right mentor will help you avoid those mistakes and will help you make the right decisions. Some of my greatest mentors have seen the biggest obstacles in business and have learned valuable lessons in the process. Their insight is invaluable.

Over the years my mentors have saved me from getting into bad business deals, have helped coach me through hardships, and have even saved me from bankruptcy at one point in my career. Before making a big decision, always get their feedback before pulling the trigger!

2.) They may become your Business Partner

Having a mentor can be beneficial to you as they will have a desire to help you, but it’s also important that you include them as you grow and succeed in areas that they can be apart of as well.  Sometimes your mentors will become your business partners or even investors in your next idea. As you build a relationship with each other you start to build trust. As they start to build trust with you and see your abilities as a mentee, they will find ways to work with you.

In 2015 I got Kevin Harrington, the Original Shark of ABCs Shark Tank as a mentor. Over time we built a relationship with one another. One day while riding in his vehicle on the way to an event in Tampa, FL I shared a story of a book I launched for John Lee Dumas, which led to one of the largest book launches in history on Kickstarter. His curiosity led to asking more questions. One of them being “Do you think we could have a successful book launch together?”. Of course, I said, YES! And that led to the launch of the best selling book “Put a Shark in Your Tank”.

“Success Breeds Success”

That one business deal led to many more successes together. We now have ownership in multiple companies together as Advisors. I’ve learned that if you prove to your mentor what you are capable of, they will invest their time, money, and efforts back into you. Be a great mentee and you will be rewarded greatly!

3.) They will make you Think Bigger

I’m sure you have heard the saying “You are the average of the 5 people you spend the most time with”.

When you spend enough time with the right mentors you will start to THINK bigger than you did before. They will challenge you to do things you normally wouldn’t do on your own and their accountability will ensure that you follow-through with the tasks necessary to achieve the goals you set out for.

Some of my greatest ideas have come to me while having a simple conversation with my mentors or being in the room with them as they speak with others. The way that seasoned entrepreneurs look at things is much different than the rookie entrepreneur does. Even if you aren’t a rookie, and have seen success in business, you can still learn something from them. We are always learning and should continue to learn until the day we die.

How to Get a Shark as a Mentor

If you are looking for a mentor or are wondering how to find the right mentor, I suggest you check out the book “Mentor to Millions: Secrets of Success in Business, Relationships, and Beyond” by Kevin Harrington and Mark Timm. The book shares with you exactly how Mark got Kevin as his mentor. It all started with Mark watching Kevin on Shark Tank with his family one night.

This led Mark on a mission to figure out how Kevin was able to scale 20 of his companies to $100 Million and beyond. Like a modern-day Napoleon Hill, he did countless meetings with Kevin in person and asked him everything about his life and how he achieved his success. You will hear Kevin’s early days of selling door to door, how he pioneered the infomercial industry, and how he’s closed some of the biggest deals in history.

This book is the perfect example of a successful mentor and mentee relationship and how it led to many successful business endeavors. It also shares with you how to have success in your family life, which is the most important part of all.

The book releases on September 22nd. You can pre-order a copy now at all of your favorite book stores.

Beyond getting a copy of the book, I suggest you find a mentor. Entrepreneurship can be a tough ride and you can’t do it alone.