Page 8 - BusinessWest May 16, 2022

they got to be successful. And there’s a reason for that; some things you must learn the hard way in order to learn them well.”
How well someone copes with failure, and, overall, how well one can learn from it, will play a larger role in one’s ultimate success in business than any given product or service, said Cole, who told BusinessWest that he focuses on helping those that he mentors become good entrepre- neurs much more than he counsels them on any specific idea they may have to change the world as we know it.
Getting the Idea
As he talked about his mentoring work, Cole said he “got the bug,” eight to 10 years ago.
That bug, as he called it, is a desire to give back to what is, by all accounts, a growing num- ber of people who would rather work for them- selves than for someone else. Or at least try to do just that.
What all who try find out is that this isn’t easy, and if it were, everyone would do it. The fact that not everyone does, speaks to just how hard this is, meaning every aspect of entrepreneurship, from conceptualizing ideas to bringing them to market, to coping with the known — things like competition and the laws of supply and demand — to dealing with the unknown and sometimes what can’t possibly be foreseen ... like a global pandemic.
Overall, entrepreneurship is daunting, said those we spoke with, adding that it’s important to assist those who don’t know what they don’t know with the many important aspects of starting and then running a business, while also helping them deal with the roller-coaster ride that is entrepre-
neurship and all that comes with it.
“I force them to realize that they’re not alone,
that they can rely on their mentors to help them,” said Schmidt. “That creates a sense of comfort; it’s not me against the world — I’ve got people who have my back.”
This ‘having one’s back’ aspect of mentoring
who have a hard time failing,” she went on. “I work with people to break down the steps and celebrate each and every small thing.”
There are many of these small things that are involved with starting a business and taking it to the next level — whatever that might be, said those we spoke with, adding that, overall, they
BILL COLE
“I tell them not to be afraid of failing — and for obvious reasons. The bottom line is this ... if you interview all the super successful people in this world, you’ll find that a common thread is that they failed miserably many times before they got to be successful. And there’s a reason for that; some things you must learn the hard way in order to learn them well.”
is as important as any practical advice on a prod- uct or marketing, or reading a balance sheet, said those we spoke with, adding that they want to help people learn about themselves as much as they do about business.
“There’s a lot to learn, and when we’re in a space of learning, self-doubt comes in,” said Cor- sello. “And that creates an emotional response
— ‘I can’t do it,’ or ‘I’m overwhelmed.’ There are some people who have a mindset for entrepre- neurship and it’s very easy for them — they’re not afraid to fail, they’re not afraid to take
risks; their natural strengths are geared toward entrepreneurship.
“There are others who have a hard time with uncertainty, who have a hard time taking risks,
work with their mentees to keep their eye on both the big picture and all the little things that con- tribute to a business being successful.
And while doing so, as Corsello noted, they try to make these entrepreneurs feel comfortable in their own skin. This in a nutshell, is what she strives to do as a mentor to entrepreneurs, a new role she accepted recently as part of the program known as Blueprint Easthampton, which she helped launch.
She said mentoring is like coaching, in that she’s helping build the confidence needed to get where they desire to go.
“I get to see people in their full light, essen- tially, and fully believe in them when they can’t believe in themselves,” she explained. “They’re
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8 MAY 16, 2022
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