Whether you’re just starting your career, halfway up the corporate ladder or thinking of starting your own business, getting financial (and other) advice from successful professionals in your field can be a good idea. Someone who has traveled a path similar to the one you’re on has a lot of insight that can help you avoid pitfalls in the future or set yourself up for greater stability.
Find out more about the advantages of getting financial advice from people who are already successful in your field below. And then learn how you can use Introducely to connect with people who can give you that insight.
1. Better Understand Your Own Earning Potential
One huge factor in long-term financial success is your own earning potential. And while no professional can break out the crystal ball to direct your path toward guaranteed increases in pay, people who have had success in your industry may have wisdom to help you earn more. Some things they may be able to shine a light on include:
- Selecting the right job opportunities for each step in your career. You only have the perception of where you are now and where you may want to go. An experienced and successful professional has trial-and-error experience on getting to where you want to go, so they can give actionable advice about planning career steps to support higher future earning potential.
- Skill sets that make you a more attractive candidate or employee. Professionals that have reached success in your industry know what it takes to get there. They may also have arrived at leadership positions, which means they have experience in hiring and coaching their own staff — and that can translate to real-life information on the skills that are in most demand in your niche.
- Other ways to increase earning potential. Is that one certificate worth spending time to get, or should you go back to school to get a graduate degree? Polling people who are already financially successful in your niche can be one way to gather data and sound financial advice before making these types of decisions.
2. Access Insider Information About Career Opportunities
When you know people at various levels in your niche — or have ongoing mentorship relationships with them — you may be able to benefit from insider information about new career opportunities. Those who are already successful in your industry may hear of positions in their own company or even be the ones doing the hiring. They also probably have a network in the industry that may be larger than the one you’re currently growing, which makes it more likely they’ll hear about opportunities at other businesses.
Getting insider information about career opportunities can ensure you get a resume in the door before a rush of applicants, possibly leading to more consideration of yours. If you’re in contact with the right people, you may also get the benefit of references or introductions that give you a better chance at landing an interview.
The ability to get a better job or promotion helps you earn more. But those who have come before may also be able to provide you with information about company culture or which organizations have the best benefits or bonus packages. That type of financial advice can help you say yes to the opportunities that are most likely to help you earn well.
3. Get Niche Advice About Starting or Growing Your Business
Perhaps you don’t want to work for someone else at all and you’re looking to start your own business. Or maybe you already did that and you’d like to get some good advice to help you grow your business. Here are just a few ways financial advice from someone successful in your niche might help when you’re starting or growing a business:
- Information about funding options. Someone who’s been around in your niche may know of specific loans or grants for companies in the industry, and they may have contacts with organizations willing to lend such funds. Other funding options that a more experienced professional might know about include angel investors and options for successfully crowdfunding product launches.
- Tips for pricing products or services. How much are your products or services worth or what will people be likely to pay for them? This can be a hard question to answer, especially for those who are just starting out. Someone with more experience in the niche may provide you with support and insight that helps you confidently address cost for your business.
- Help hiring the right people. If you’re ready to grow your business, someone who has more experience can help you find the right people to hire or provide advice about pay rates, skill sets to look for and other factors that can impact positive outcomes. Hiring good people is critical to financial success for your business.
- Daily operations and money management. A person who has successfully navigated the confusing waters of growing a business in your industry can provide valuable advice about daily operations, how you might want to set up your business structure and money management — such as when you might need to rely on credit or how much money you should hold in cash reserves.
4. Enjoy Improved Clarity With an Understanding Sounding Board
While big decisions can certainly have large impacts on your financial future, little choices matter too. If you’re able to connect with someone who has seen success in your niche, you may be able to develop a relationship with them as your mentor. That opens the door to reaching out to them whenever you need to talk through the pros and cons of a decision and receive financial advice.
For example, maybe you simply want to work out how much to put into your 401k or whether stock options are a good benefit to take advantage of. Or, perhaps you’d like to practice asking for a raise or want some third-party advice about whether you have a good argument for a higher pay rate.
When you have a connection with someone who works — or previously worked — in your industry but doesn’t currently work for your company, you can have these discussions and enjoy the benefits of confidentiality and distance from your actual day-to-day work life. You can talk through all the points — good or bad — and try out different scenarios without impacting your actual job or perception of you at work. Then, once you make a decision, you’re more prepared to bring that action into your real work life.
5. Share Concerns With Someone Fluent in the Language of Your Industry
Sometimes you don’t actually need advice. You simply need to talk about concerns or complaints with someone who is fluent in the language of your industry. If you don’t need to set up the situation or explain all the details, you can quickly get to the crux of the matter. And the experienced professional may be able to provide a point of view that makes it easier for you to work through a challenge or resolve anger or annoyance at an issue.
While not actually financial advice, per se, this can help you financially by reducing potential issues in the workplace that could lead to a poor performance evaluation or other negative outcome. When you’re performing better, you’re more likely to be considered for a raise, promotion, bonus or other financial reward.
How Introducely Can Help
If you’re wondering how you meet these successful professionals in your niche, the answer is Introducely. The platform allows you to form professional and personal connections with others in your niche via the work of Introducers. Those are people who are willing to share their personal and professional networks with others.
You can sign up as a Requester on Introducely and ask to be introduced to all types of people. That includes people who are successful in your industry. For example, someone just starting out in marketing might ask to be introduced to a successful marketing CEO of a company with at least $5 million in sales annually. Or, someone who is considering starting their own small law practice might ask to be introduced to a lawyer that owns a solo or partner practice and has successfully done so for a decade or more. Once Introducers connect you with the appropriate successful professionals, you can set up meetings over Google or coffee to talk about your career, financial advice, business ideas or anything else. Who knows: The first meeting might turn into a long-term mentor relationship with positive benefits to both sides.
About the Author
Nick Chasinov
Nick Chasinov is the founder of Introducely and covers topics regarding sales, marketing, technology, networking, career growth, and all things Introducely related.