In college, I was a frat boy. Michael Acerra changed that.
Mike was an alumnus of my fraternity, an entrepreneur with a roofing company and a public insurance adjusting business, and one of the most intelligent people I've ever met. He took me from college frat boy to business-minded. He introduced me to self-development and got me thinking about business, money, and my future at a higher level than anyone around me.
Then he introduced me to Eddie Arroyos, who became my first client, my mentor for more than five years, and the man who gave me a place to live when my credit kept me from getting one.
Your life changes when you're humble enough to learn from people further down the road.
You become who you're around
My father wrote two principles that explain why mentors matter: to succeed in business, surround yourself with successful people, and you are a product of your environment. If everyone around you thinks small, it's hard to think big. When you surround yourself with builders, building becomes normal.
Three kinds of mentors
- Personal mentors — People you actually know, like Mike and Eddie were for me. They see your blind spots and open doors.
- Mentors from a distance — Authors, teachers, and creators you learn from through books, videos, and podcasts.
- Life mentors — People with real-world experience, even outside business. My father never ran a tech company, but his lessons on leadership and money run through everything I do.
How I earned mine
Most people ask, “Will you mentor me?” and expect a busy, successful person to invest in them for nothing. That's not how I got Mike or Eddie.
I brought value first. Mike owned a roofing company, so I built him a roofing website for free, with no ask attached. It blew him away, and he introduced me to Eddie. With Eddie, I got online a few times a week and helped his companies with marketing, proving my value one session at a time.
I call it going to the marketplace with a seed, not a need. People can feel need, and it pushes them away. When you walk in giving, people lean in.
What makes someone worth mentoring
- Be coachable — Take the advice and actually use it.
- Bring value — Find a way to help before you ask for help.
- Show up consistently — Mentors invest in people who prove they're serious.
- Report back — Apply the advice, then tell them the result. Nothing makes a mentor want to help you more.
Build your inner circle
Mentors are part of a bigger picture. The most successful people I know are surrounded by trusted advisors in five areas: spiritual, business (mentors, an attorney, a CPA), health, financial, and home. Seek them out intentionally, test them, and appreciate them. Your inner circle is your environment.
Your playbook
- Audit your circle — List the five people you spend the most time with. Are they pulling you forward or holding you back?
- Choose your mentors — One personal, one from a distance, and one life mentor.
- Plant one seed — Find a specific way to help your personal mentor this month, before you ask for anything.
- Build a proof piece — One example of your best work you can show anyone, anytime.
Mentors don't find you because you need them. They find you because you're already moving and you've made their life better.
Want help applying this to your business?
Fixing credit, getting funded, or growing your business — tell me where you are.
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