Three Famous Billionaire Entrepreneurs and their Mentors - Small Business BC

Zuckerberg talked about his inspiring mentor Steve Jobs. “He was amazing,” said Zuckerberg. “I had a lot of questions for him.” He described how Jobs gave him advice about how he could build a team that was as focused as Zuckerberg on building “high quality and good things”.

They also both believed that their life paths were meant for more than just building businesses. They wanted to change the lives of people.

Zuckerberg wrote in a final farewell Facebook post to Jobs: “Thanks for showing that what you build can change the world.”

Bill Gates credited Warren Buffet for teaching him how to deal with tough situations and how to think long-term. Gates also greatly admires Buffet’s “desire to teach things that are complex and put them in a simple form, so that people can understand and get the benefit of all his experience.”

Buffet is empowered by Gates too. “What I really most admire about Bill is the view he has about what he should do with the wealth he’s accumulated…he knows he’s a beneficiary of a terrific society.”

Richard Branson understands the importance of mentorship. Branson asked British airline entrepreneur, Sir Freddie Laker, for guidance during his struggle to get Virgin Atlantic off the ground.

Branson believes the first step to finding a great mentor is admitting you can benefit from a mentor: “Understandably there’s a lot of ego, nervous energy and parental pride involved, especially with one- or two-person start-ups…Going it alone is an admirable, but foolhardy and highly flawed approach to taking on the world.”

If you have an experienced mentor it can be life changing and extremely valuable to your personal development and your business.

Whether your relationship is just for one year, or ongoing throughout your business journey, mentorship can empower you and drastically increase the chance of your business succeeding.