Every challenge facing a beginner, has already been experienced by someone.

Experienced entrepreneurs always like to help those who are just starting out, knowing full well how difficult their own start-up was. It is always good to embark on a business trip with someone who already has experience and can resolve weeks of uncertainty and self-learning with a single conversation. The purpose of Ustvarjalnik Mentoring is to help those who are just starting out and connecting them with more experienced colleagues.

Our mentors make sure that entrepreneurs always have someone at their disposal who can answer all their business questions.

A person who can help them with contacts and guidance, and someone who looks after them and makes sure they tackle the things that are really important. This is by far the most effective program for promoting entrepreneurship, as it is completely one on one.

Ustvarjalnik accepts mentorships for teams and individuals who have a clear intention to carry out their projects. We are happy to give everyone an hour of free help, which they can apply for by writing to our mentor, Aljaz Osetič, at aljaz@ustvarjalnik.org. If we see potential in the team, we will immediately assign them a mentor, or else we will direct them to one of our workshops or lectures and stay in touch until they are ready for intensive mentoring work.

What does the mentorship encompass

Ustvarjalnik individual mentoring is for teams (even individuals) who are already working on their business project. It is based on the belief that one is stuck before the realization of ideas for one of three reasons:
Lack of money to get started

Lack of money to get started

When you do not know how to get everything you need to get started.
Lack of knowledge to complete a project

Lack of knowledge to complete a project

When you do not know what you have to do to make your idea a business.
Lack of willpower and discipline to complete

Lack of willpower and discipline to complete

When you start procrastinating and postponing or when you want to give up on a major hurdle.
Individual tutor assistance is therefore the easiest and most certain way to get your business project done. It takes the form of regular meetings where the mentor asks you about the status of the project, and then suggests steps to follow from his experiences and makes sure that you set out to accomplish your goals. Mentors help teams in the following ways:

Advise how to raise start-up money

Help draw up a project timeline for the project

Help organize the team

Contribute recommendations and their contacts that can help the team

Oversee teamwork and help keep deadlines

The mentors are experienced entrepreneurs of the younger generation who have helped many young entrepreneurial teams through Ustvarjalnik. It is most useful for those who are just starting out and getting started with their business, but among our ranks there are definitely experts who can focus specifically on certain segments of the business: getting investment funds, marketing their product or something like that.

Each mentoring begins with a diagnosis of the current condition. Through a structured and in-depth conversation, the mentor and team get to know each other.

The mentor makes sure that they understands both the business model and the long-term goal of the team, while also getting to know them on a personal level.

The team then, together with the mentor, develops a work schedule that sets out concrete and measurable goals to be followed during the mentoring period. This helps both the mentor who directs the team towards the goal as well as the team, as it makes it easier to organize their work according to this plan.

The team meets with the mentor at regular meetings, which are either weekly or monthly, according to the agreement. Each meeting is structured and includes a presentation of the progress from the last meeting and an agreement to work towards the future. The mentor assists the team with advice and suggestions throughout this process.

In the context of regular meetings, the mentor, at his own discretion, assists the team with various expert advice or helps them get in touch with potential partners, investors or other mentors. To this end, the mentor may also assign specific tasks to the team. At the end of the mentoring period, the mentor performs an evaluation with the team, which also includes the establishment of a strategic work plan for the future.

Reference projects

Protocamel

Two girls from Slovenia started exporting dietary supplements for racing camels and in less than a year concluded the first business for 500,000 euros, set up production and started expansion into new markets. In the mentoring process, we helped them from the unrealized idea to the first approach into the market and starting a regular business.

Flare

A barely 16-year-old boy and an enthusiast of electronics set out to improve the usual yellow scarf and reflector. He created Flare – a smart reflector that allows parents to carelessly monitor their baby within the designated area. With sudden movements and gusts, it triggers an sos button to alert the parent through the mobile application.

Gaia Naturelle

A pharmacist with an innovative idea for collagen nutritional supplements has joined the organized mentoring program under the auspices of Ustvarjalnik. During the program, she distributed her business idea and determined the target segment, then developed her own brand, and through the connections advised by the mentors, she came up with a financial capital to establish production. Shortly thereafter, she received an invitation to the Start Slovenia program and began offering her products in Croatia as well.

How can we start?

Check out our team of mentors

Check out our team of mentors

Make an appointment for a meeting

Make an appointment for a meeting

Contact us by phone

Contact us by phone

You're interested?

Apply for the mentorship!

Pay with your PayPal account and we will contact you immediately.