When you first learn to do something, there was most likely someone there who showed you how to do it the correct way so that the learning curve was much smaller. If they were not there, this does not mean that you never learned how to do something, or never will learn how to complete a task.

It just means that it might take you a heck of a lot longer.

Now why in the world would you want to delay your progress?

Perhaps you are the type of person who wants to do things your way. I can agree with that. Heck I like doing things my way as well, but I have also listened to others who have been there before me and have made it work.

Picking up a coach or mentor in your online business (or offline business!) is necessary becuase they have spent endless hours doing all the work that you would have to do as well. They also most likely had a coach or mentor that told them what worked and what does not, who also gave them the correct paths to follow.

Now don’t get me wrong. One mentor might lean towards using one software or another, while a second mentor might have a specific technique to use. So to clarify, not all mentors or coaches are the same or are going to give you the complete solution to your problem. In other words, you might have to have more than one mentor or coach.

Whether you work one on one with the person, if they live local or you use online conferencing software, or if you partake in a complete course that they are providing online, being able to have contact with the coach or mentor is the best way you are going to improve. You have a much higher chance of gaining important feedback on the work you have completed when you have a way to get in touch with the coach.

If you just go through and look at the way someone runs a business, or how they phrase their subject lines to emails sent to you (assuming you signed up for their free report or to get on their notification list) you can also learn, though it will not be as intimate becuase chances are they will not respond to your emails if you have a question. It is, however, those marketers who do respond to those emails that make a difference. Those are the ones who put their students first and make sure they succeed.

Often times, it appears that some of the big names you see over and over again online are untouchable when it comes to getting in contact with them. However, this could not be further from the truth. Those marketers who do not let you contact them are fools. They are losing out by not getting in touch with you and this is one thing you want to look for when choosing a coach or mentor in your online business.

Currently, I am in a couple coaching programs, which I endorse and highly recommend you take a few minutes to check them out. These are marketers who have been there and been successful. These are marketers who will get in touch with you when you drop them a message on Facebook or to their email address. These are some of the marketers who understand that if you do not succeed, neither do they.

1) Daegan Smith: Maximum Leverage: He is currently living on Facebook now it seems helping everyone he can.

2) Anik Singal: Marketing with Anik (starts 15 week live training Monday January 16, 2012, which I look forward to learning more from)

3) Joel Therien: GVO Host Then Profit: Has developed a complete marketing software package for new online marketers

I am not trying to do other marketers injustice by leaving them off this short list, but these are the ones I have been spending a majority of my time continuing to learn from recently. These are the ones who keep putting their students first as they know it is the key to their success as well.

Another reason why you need a coach or mentor in your online business is to save you money. Now you might be thinking how, as you often will have to pay money to get the coaching. The reason is because they are going to show you with their specific methods how to best establish your marketing campaigns so that you save money in the long run, whether through a service that combines all your marketing needs or through ways to get free links back to your site.

The hard part comes in choosing which coach or mentor is right for you. If you are starting out this can be a daunting task. Like which pair of jeans do you want to buy. You are not going to buy all the pairs at once, though over the course of a couple years, you may pick up a few dozen or so pairs of jeans, pants and shorts. You might even buy a suit now and again. The same holds true with coaches and mentors. Some might give you the basics and have free or low entry fees into their programs, while others might be higher end with a big ticket price.

The important thing to remember is to make sure you always carry out your due dilligence and research who are are going to join to make sure it fits your business model. If you have vision, you might even pick something up in advance before you know you will use it, because you know you will use it when the time is right. If you can pick it up in their launch days, or sale periods, this helps.

There are many others reasons why you need a coach or mentor in your online business and I have just touched the surface of why they are important. If you haven’t already make sure you sign up over on the right side so I can notify with more great information and let you now about great programs that are coming out that can help you improve your business. I do not profess to be a guru, though I have learned enough online that I could be considered a coach or mentor.

I am actually a full time science teacher at the HS level and also coach bowling as well as lacrosse. So I have experience in that regards!