Alright, now before I get into my five tips
on how to find a mentor, I need to share something
with you and that is the number one thing
you should absolutely 100% never ask
when you're looking for a mentor.
Can you guess what it is?
(upbeat music)
Hey guys, it's Alex.
And this week I am making an insanely important PSA
for those of you who are looking to become a copywriter.
To fast track your way to high paid copywriter status,
you need the three E's,
Education, Experience and Expert advice.
And there is no doubt that one of the best ways
to do this is through finding a mentor.
Your mentor could be someone who you learn from online
whose work becomes your guiding voice and inspiration.
They could be past teachers, employers or friends
that you look up to. Or a mentor could be someone
from a completely different industry
who inspires you about leadership and accountability.
I myself learned marketing and copywriting
from a handful of incredible mentors
like Vishen Lakhiani, the founder of MindValley
where I worked for three and a half years.
Frank Kern whose events I attended
and courses I fiercely studied and Marie Forleo,
whose work I have followed for over a decade,
including attending her very first event
in New York City and joining her programs.
So if you're now looking for a mentor
to get started on your copywriting journey,
I have some tips that I'm gonna share
with you in today's video.
Now, the good news is you're already on the right track,
you're here you're watching my video.
My channel is 100% dedicated to copywriters
and business owners who are out there looking
to start and scale your businesses
with crazy good copy.
You guys, I spend hours every single week
producing a free video tutorial just for you.
Yes, free mentorship that offers education,
experience and expert advice.
So if you're not already
part of the global Copy Posse,
go ahead and hit subscribe below
and ring that little bell to be notified
when my next video goes live.
Now, do I have your permission
to be like 10,000 million percent real with you guys?
You know that I'm a no BS kind of gal.
So if you're ready for some straight
and maybe a little bit sassy talk
then give me a thumbs up below.
And let's get started.
Alright now before I get into my five tips
on how to find a mentor,
I need to share something with you
and that is the number one thing
you should absolutely 100% never ask
when you're looking for a mentor.
Can you guess what it is?
You should never ask, will you be my mentor?
Now I get this question all the time
from my followers and subscribers.
So while you may feel like you're special
and unique when asking this question,
you're literally one of hundreds
and I know I'm not the only one
who gets these messages all the time.
I've gotten this question countless times
from complete strangers,
people who have never taken the time
to even have a conversation with me,
let alone say hi or comment on my work.
I'm sorry, but WTF who out there
is actually telling you that this is okay?
It is not, by asking a complete stranger
to be your mentor without first offering
any sort of acknowledgement, value or introduction,
you're essentially saying,
"Hi, your time is invaluable
and you should just give it to me for free."
Um, how about a hard no. After number 923,
I simply stopped responding to these types
of messages and instead decided
to put out this video.
Because there is something you need to understand.
The experts who you wanna get access
to have put years, thousands of hours
and countless dollars into growing their careers.
They've learned that in order to be successful,
they need to protect their time and energy,
and give it to those who are willing
to offer something in return.
The best mentors and coaches
are not gonna hold your hand
and tell you what to do, and do it for free.
Mentorship requires an energy and value exchange
and I'm not just talking monetary value.
There are plenty of ways to find a mentor for free,
but there are some ground rules
and that's what I'm here to talk about today.
So here are my five tips to help you get started
on the right path to finding a mentor.
Tip number one, be resourceful, not helpless.
Guys, unless you were somehow raised by aliens
and are just making your way down
to planet earth where there's
this magical oracle called the internet,
you know that in order to get specific help,
you need to ask specific questions.
You don't type please, please, please
help me into Google, do you?
No, there is nothing more frustrating
than when a stranger DMs me with a generic plea for help.
And it's frustrating because I want to help you,
but how am I supposed to know how
to help you when you don't ask a specific question?
So here's my advice.
If you're looking for guidance from a mentor,
do your research first, investigate
and study all the information they already
have available for free.
Then if you still need clarification,
or have a specific question,
go ahead and ask.
You're 100% more likely
to get a response that way.
Remember, the goal here is
to be resourceful, not helpless.
According to Tim Ferriss, multi best selling author
of "The 4-Hour Workweek", "Tools of Titans"
and yep, a "Tribe of Mentors",
anyone who just tells you what to do
without encouraging you first to think for yourself,
isn't a very good mentor at all.
The mentors who are the most helpful
are those who don't necessarily give you the answer,
but give you a way of finding the answer.
They mentor through inspiration, education,
and yes, a little bit of tough love.
Alright, tip number two, nurture your advocates.
So, this tip is inspired by my friend
and founder of Freelancing School, Jay Clouse.
The idea is to assess
and nurture your existing network
and the people you already know to find a mentor.
In other words, reach out to the people
who are already familiar with you
and therefore more personally motivated
to advocate for your success,
whether it's someone you've worked with before,
or a colleague who has seen your work
and is aware of your goals
or a family friend that you've helped before.
These advocates are a great place to seek advice.
They could be a great mentor for you,
or at the very least they could be your ambassador
who will vouch for you and refer you
to someone who could be a great mentor.
You want to be the first person
that pops into your advocate's minds
when they're talking to potential mentors for you.
So your first job is to build awareness
about what you're hoping to achieve
and how you can add value.
In the words of author Robin Dreeke in his book,
"The Code of Trust", he says that people
are hardwired to enjoy offering assistance,
not only as a mechanism to receive assistance themselves,
but to satisfy the innate human drive for altruism.
People want to help people,
so make it easy for them to
do so by showing up and adding value.
Alright, tip number three,
offer your time, don't demand time.
In an interview on entrepreneur.com,
Tim Ferriss also firmly stated whatever you do,
do not ask people to be your mentor,
which guess what?
Was advice given to him by his mentor.
Tim agrees that people you actually want advice
from likely don't have time
for yet another responsibility
that they're not getting paid for.
And the people who are quick to say yes
to becoming your mentor with just asking the question,
will you be my mentor?
Are probably disqualifying themselves
from being the kind of mentor you actually want.
In fact, one of Tim's
best mentorship experiences happened unintentionally.
It was when he decided to volunteer
for an event for business startups.
He showed up at the event
and was willing to do whatever it took
to be noticed as a dedicated team member,
rather than simply do
the bare minimum work required of the volunteers.
Well guess what?
He stood out and as a result,
he started getting invited
to important team meetings and was involved
in some decision making with the event leaders.
In the end, it was that volunteer experience
and the connections he made at that event
that gave him the guidance
and stepping stone he needed to propel
his career forward.
And eventually he got introduced
to the right people to secure his book deal for
"The 4-Hour Workweek".
That is pretty amazing.
So when looking for a mentor,
instead of demanding their time, offer yours,
ask how can I serve,
rather than what can you give to me?
Now an important lesson here is that
Tim didn't just go around asking everyone,
"what can I do for free?"
Because when you ask this,
even though the intent is pure to offer value,
it actually puts the onus back on the mentor
to try to figure out what you can do for them.
It's like having another team member to manage.
So when you're looking for ways to offer your time,
don't wait to be told what to do,
look for opportunities to help and take them.
Alright, now tip number four, build relationships.
Would the first message you send to someone
on a dating app after swiping right be,
will you marry me?
No, well, the same thing applies here.
You can't go from zero to hero in one DM or email,
you have to build awareness about
who you are before demanding action.
The mentors you want are likely
insanely busy people with busy lives
and have existing work relationships
they're already investing loads of time and energy in.
So, when approaching mentors,
you really need to ask yourself,
why am I someone that they should invest their time in?
And that's time away from their families
and their businesses and their other commitments.
Hmm, if you can't confidently answer that question,
no wonder you're getting ghosted.
So yeah, in order to be considered
by a potential mentor,
you first need to create a relationship with them.
To do that they first need to know who you are.
Then they need to be interested in mentoring you.
And then they need to want to be your mentor.
And that's a lot of steps that take time and energy.
So start by introducing yourself
and engage with them without expectation
and before you think you won't stand a chance,
and that's why you feel the need
to cut to the chase and just ask them
to be a mentor right away,
I'm gonna go ahead and debunk that belief.
I have plenty of followers who comment on my work regularly
and send me messages to thank me
or ask genuine questions about copywriting on my videos.
And guess what?
I always write back to them
and I remember them for it.
I absolutely love receiving messages like that
because it makes me feel appreciated
for all this work that I put into creating
this content for you guys.
Yes, building relationships is the long game
but it makes you memorable
and valuable to your mentor as a supporter and fan.
And even if they don't end up becoming your mentor,
you might even learn a thing
or two from investing that time and energy.
Now of course, one of the best ways
to fast track this whole process is to join a paid coaching
or a mentorship program like my Copy Posse Launch Pad.
Not only do my students walk away
with completed portfolios
and Copy Posse Launch Pad certificates,
but they have me as an advocate and mentor.
So to find out more about my program,
you can click the link in the description below.
Alright, now moving on to tip number five,
offer your skills, pay their bills.
Yes, I will say it again, mentorship is not meant
to be a one way street.
Have you ever stopped to consider
what you bring to the table as a mentee?
Beyond your desire to become a copywriter,
of course, which doesn't exactly make
for an epic prodigy story.
So while taking into account all
the tips I've already shared in this video,
another crucial step to becoming a worthy mentee
is to have the right mindset.
So do you focus on growth and challenge
or are you just after quick results?
Are you a dedicated student
or are you just out to earn money?
Are you looking to solve problems
and help where you can or get a handout?
Remember, mentorship is about value exchange.
Chances are you have past experience
and skills and knowledge that you can share
with a potential mentor
to help them propel their business forward.
Perhaps you have design skills
or video editing skills or social media knowledge
or customer service experience,
by offering to provide a service for free
in exchange for mentorship,
you're honoring your mentor's time by leading with value,
but you're also potentially saving them
a lot of money that they might have
to pay to get that skill elsewhere.
So offer your skills, pay their bills
and you have a win-win relationship
that can ignite your copywriting business.
So there you have it guys,
the Copy Posse guide to finding a mentor through integrity,
humility, and authenticity.
Thank you so much for letting me
give you a little bit of tough love in this one,
give me a thumbs up below if you found
this video helpful.
Your support means a lot to me and I love,
love, love hearing from you guys.
Now, here's some videos for you to check out next.
Thank you so much for watching
and subscribing and I will see you next week
with a brand new video.
Until then, I'm Alex. Ciao for now.