Successful Mastermind Groups Contain The Right People

By now you should have a better idea just who to look for when organizing your 21st Mastermind Group(s).

And before I get too far along, I want to say what has already occurred to you by now; you can certainly be an active participant in more than one group at the same time.

Later I’ll flesh this out a bit, but your dad/son/daughter etc. can be in one or more groups and you can be in one or more groups – as well as other members of your family and your business, all at the same time.

Think about it, if you’re the anointed successor in your business, perhaps you should put together a mastermind group of other successors like you.

I know from experience that after a year of meeting regularly with your contemporaries, you will stop complaining about your dad and uncle’s decisions and thank your lucky stars that they are so much easier to get along with than those of your fellow group members.

On the other hand, if you represent the senior generation in your company, a group composed of your peers – if chosen wisely – could open your eyes and those of the rest of the group to the possibilities that your successors provide.

Rather than a gripe group pining for the good old days (when you complained about the way your dad did things), your group can open your mind to such novel ideas as letting the kids (age 30-50) play a more active role in the management of the business.

My point is this; there is no optimum group makeup formula, although there are specific qualities and characteristics that make up the ideal group participant.

Generally, you should be looking for individuals who are successful so you’ll trust what you learn from them.

You’re looking for people who are motivated and ready to move forward, with goals and a high level of energy. And because of the ongoing nature of the successful group, you’re looking for people who are strategy focused.

Strategy focused individuals make excellent thought partners, which is great for you, whether you are strategically focused or not.

Others in your group will be more tactical in their thinking while others will be creative.

The key ingredient, no matter what, is their commitment – to the group, the process, and to themselves.

This commitment will be demonstrated early on by their participation, showing up for the calls, and following up on what they said they’d do.

In my experience it’s a trial and error process. If it’s not working for someone, you’ll need to replace him or her, a rotten apple and all that, and move on.

Believe me, when you have the right mix you’ll know it!

This is not a networking group!
While we’re on the subject of inviting the right people, it is important to make sure that everyone, especially prospective members, understand the nature of a peer group.

There are so many ‘networking’ types of organizations out there I just want to be clear when I say that networking is not the aim of a peer group.

You and the other members are there to serve one another, not badger each other for new business leads or referrals.

The typical networking group or leads group is made up of individuals, each of whom represents a particular profession or vocation.

For example, there could be only one member who is a printer, one who is an accountant, one who is a veterinarian and so forth.

I have never personally been part of such a group but have several friends who find theirs an effective way to generate new business.

If this is what you’re looking for, there must be several existing organizations in your area that offer this, and you should check them out – but they are not peer groups.

There are mastermind groups where an organizer puts together groups of strangers, making up individual groups.

The mastermind group organizers help the groups get started, act as facilitators, and encourage the members to reenlist when their initial term is up or switch to another group if they are finding the experience less than optimum for them.

There are several things about these sponsored mastermind groups that make them less productive that the 21st Century Mastermind Group process, nevertheless, there may be enough of a benefit to you for you to join one.

Generally, these types of groups meet in person so there’s the cost in time associated with that.

Naturally there are fees involved for the organizer and their organization.

There is usually a contingent of members who are really there to promote themselves, making it uncomfortable for everyone else.

But the real drawback is that these groups are made up of strangers with unknowable goals and desires.

The typical organized mastermind groups that are successful over a long period of time or more from the lucky happenstance of people who genuinely like one another somehow getting in the same group.

All that being said, join as many different kinds of groups as you have time for.

Take along the information you’re finding here (keep it to yourself) and take all the credit for the insights and strategies you bring to the group.

Vertical Mentors
I know you’re familiar with the expression, “if we both think alike, then one of us is not necessary” – well that certainly applies to the creation of an effective peer group.

The most strategically productive groups are those that contain members with far different levels of experience, where the people are at very different stages of their careers and where the age range is upward of 15 years from the youngest to the oldest.

Why, because we feel so much more comfortable with people just like ourselves – so we are less challenged and less challenging to them.

After all their excuses are the same as ours, so we won’t embarrass them with the hard questions and they won’t embarrass us.

If we’re able to find 5 other people just like ourselves, we can get together twice a month and lie to each other, talk about what we’re going to do knowing no one will ever ask if we actually did it, and when the call is over we’ll feel positively virtuous for spending the time on self development.

When the group is made up with some younger people just getting started in their business, those of us who’ve all the mistakes at least once can really help them.

These younger people will kick start the older members, getting the fired up again.

The last decade has been revolutionary when it comes to the availably of inexpensive technologies, something the younger people know more about than the senior generation does.

They are in a position to mentor people their father’s age, providing the honest answers they need, but don’t think they’ll get from their vendors.

Are you getting more ideas of the sort of folks you’d like to be in a peer group with?

Write down a dozen of them now, you’ll have to invite 2 to get one.

The first one is the most important one, since they will set the tone for the rest. And it often happens that the first one knows some folks you don’t know and between the two of you the remaining four quickly appear.

Professional Advisers
No, I am not going to suggest that you have a member of your peer group who is a professional service provider. No members who are lawyers, accountants, life insurance agents, coaches, consultants etc.

That is unless that is everyone’s profession. Remember, I said that the most effective groups I have ever seen are those made up of people in the same industry, so if you are in the insurance business form a group of fellow agents and you’ll all be more successful.

But if your group is made up of business owners like you is, say, the upholstery business, don’t have a member who’s an accountant.

On the other hand, invite that accountant to come to your group as a guest presenter.

Let’s say that you’ve heard of an accountant who works only with people in the upholstery business. Your meetings are held over the phone so it doesn’t matter that the accountant lives 500 miles away.

He or she can be on the call just as easily as any of the other members.

You plan in advance, maybe collecting and sending along selected questions in advance. Questions, the answers to which are important to you, but that you are not quite ready to ask your accountant.

The day and time of the peer group call comes and the accountant answers everyone’s questions and provides additional insights of value to everyone (remember you are all in the upholstery business) and it was 100% free.

Why would the high priced accountant do this? Because they’re looking for new business just like everybody else!

And if they really do specialize with people in your industry, they will jump at the chance to model their best services in front of a half-dozen of their ideal prospects.

When you get to the discussion of the co-created agenda process (Sample Agenda Detailed)you’ll see just how you can make well-qualified professionals as guests part of your ongoing meeting strategy.

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