To learn about business from all angles we need to actively seek out and surround ourselves with three different people:
- Someone better and more experienced that you can learn from (a mentor),
- Someone less experienced and greener that you can teach (a mentee), and
- Someone equal that you can challenge yourself against (a competitor).
Having a mentor and a mentee will help you realise what you don’t know and what you do. The mentor will give you guidance and will prevent you from making some of the mistakes that they made. The mentee will help you internalise the lessons you’ve learned (through mentorship or mistakes).
The competitor will keep you focused on testing, harnessing and honing the skills you’ve gained.