Even the biggest names in industry had to start somewhere, and one of the best ways to progress one’s career is by having a mentor, an expert said, speaking to young entrepreneurs recently in Dubai, UAE.

There are many hurdles to getting a venture off the ground, not least finding the money to do so, getting the first customer and understanding your market, added John Cull, mentoring consultant with the non-profit global network Youth Business International (YBI).

Still, a problem shared is a problem halved and one often-overlooked area of support is simply having someone to provide friendly advice, Cull said.

"Generally a young person getting into business doesn't know what they don't know. The role of a mentor is to help, support and challenge a person as they go through transitions in their lives, in this case as they start their business,” he explained.

"From their experience, mentors can ask the challenging questions. Decisions about the business will always be made by the entrepreneur, but if it doesn't work out the mentor can help them think about what they would do differently next time," Cull said. "Mentors also have a great way of being able to bring creative ideas to the table."

YBI's network of organisations helps young people in more than 40 countries get their start-up ideas going by providing loans and, crucially, pairing them with a business mentor. In one third of 21 countries surveyed, young entrepreneurs said their mentor made more of a positive difference to their business than money, according to a YBI study. – TradeArabia News Service