Mastermind Group
What Lessons Can We Learn From Our Mastermind Group?
Over the weekend I traveled into London to meet up with other members of our Mastermind Group, I always enjoy the opportunity to share ideas,to gain the advantage of the view of many heads rather than one and of course it was an opportunity to catch up with friends,a real win-win basically
Too often I believe we plough our own furrow but as Michael Gerber taught us, often the problem with the boss is that the boss doesn’t have one, sometimes it is really important to have an external view to hold you to account and to my mind that is exactly what a Mastermind Group does
Now let’s be honest here, a Mastermind Group that just praises what you are doing serves no real purpose,no the true power of a Mastermind Group is to support, develop and critically challenge you and to a large extent that is exactly what I encountered on Saturday
Why should being challenged prove important? I think simply that we must remember that we write for and sell products to our audience,therefore our sole purpose is to meet and exceed their expectations, if we ever start just to flatter our own egos then our Mastermind Group will act as a strong brake on that
Gaining Maximum Advantage From Our Mastermind Group
In order to gain maximum advantage from our Mastermind Group we must think both in terms of what we want and also in terms of what we are going to invest in the group in return, all take and no give will never work in this kind of situation,in order to get what you want you must in turn be willing to help others achieve what they want
Now granted when you first start out you are not in a position to offer much but you are in a position to offer your views, a second pair of eyes and an alternative voice of what somebody else is doing,making your Mastermind Group work is not just about teaching,often it is about helping people simply to get started
And here in lies perhaps the biggest reason for failure in online businesses and that is a sheer sense of overwhelm, instead of breaking tasks down people just see too much in front of them and no way of getting to the other side,every journey of a 1000 miles must start with a first step and your Mastermind Group is that important first step
As your own skill levels rise you must of course hold out your hand and help people up, you now know which resources work and which don’t,you broadly know where to source products and services and vitally you have gone through and solved your own key frustrations,by sharing this knowledge and developing other members of your Mastermind Group you begin to complete the process
The Best Resources For Developing Your Mastermind Group
The origins of today’s Mastermind Group go back to the meeting between Andrew Carnegie and the man who we probably now regard as the father of the process Napoleon Hill, personally I think Hill will get the credit but Carnegie really created the principal, for more details read my post from Feb 21
A lack of knowledge is a key reason for joining a
Michael Gerber famously said the problem with the boss is the Boss Doesn’t Have One your Mastermind Group will hold you to account, Michael Gerber’s E Myth Enterprise will also hold you to account and critically explain the key failing that holds back most entrepreneurs and how to make sure you don’t fall into this trap
So it’s time to hand things over to you for your thoughts,are you a member of a Mastermind Group, do you find the support invaluable or do you resent it,speaking personally here I really value my Mastermind Group
Filed under My Online Journey by on Apr 18th, 2011. Comment. 
Mastermind Group
Are You Making The Most Of Your Mastermind Group?
I mentioned towards the end of last week that I was off to meet my Mastermind Group on Saturday, this was a problem solving workshop and I put myself in the hotseat by going first, now you might think that’s quite daunting but I find it really helpful, I have a new project in final build stage and the feedback is invaluable
Judging by the responses I got when I spoke about building a Mastermind Group back in November and the number of comments I got on the subject it clearly hit a nerve in terms of people seeing the value in getting support and I think critically getting many fresh pairs of eyes over what you are doing
In the online world we are often working alone in an office and as Michael Gerber once told us the problem with the boss is the boss doesn’t have one, your Mastermind Group will form part of an accountability partnership that keeps you on track, makes you hit time deadlines and meet quality standards
There is however 1 highly valuable resource that you get from a Mastermind Group that I think is too easy to overlook, what is new to you is an everyday task to somebody else, don’t reinvent the wheel it’s already been done let somebody help you with the challenge and in turn make sure you do the same with others, in life we reap what we sow
Shared Experience Is The Real Mastermind Group Power That You Can Harness
Though shared experiences we grow as people, one man or woman is not an island, the power of attending seminars and meetings is not in the one time offer the speaker makes, the just twenty and we close this down at only $2997 Dollars hmm! no the value is in the group that meets for coffee, the networking opportunities, future Mastermind Group members, JV partners, affiliate managers etc
If I send you an e mail and ask for your help it will likely fall on stony ground if however we talk as a group and we get to know each other the opportunities are frankly endless, the real power of a Mastermind Group is in the contacts that you make, the friendships and the trust that grows from it and the sharing of successful ideas from that
The need to travel thousands of miles has gone although on a rainy February morning the idea of being in Florida or somewhere like Southern Spain in the sunshine would be welcome, online marketing is popular all over the world now so building your Mastermind Group within an hour to two hours of where you live should be easier than ever
One of our Mastermind Group now travels regularly and looks after the UK interests of a major Internet Marketer based on connections he made attending a seminar, instead of getting swept along with the hype at these events concentrate on what practical value you can get out of it, if that includes buying products that answer a pressing need rather than the latest magic button software then all the better
Resources To Support Your Mastermind Group Development
So what resources can you use to explode your Mastermind Group experience, well clearly there are many but I will highlight three key ones, number one has to be Outsourcing it releases your time to concentrate on the key areas of your business and stops a lack of technical knowledge getting in your way
I have included a video clip of Napolean Hill talking about what Andrew Carnegie taught him, how he overcame self doubt and went on teach the world about the power of a Mastermind Group, the idea is as powerful today as it was when the two men met, only we can set the limits of how much we achieve or how we get in our own way
Lastly I am going to recommend that of the modern day teachers Rich Schefren is really powerful, his free content is better than much by way of paid content and his founders club program is the best out there, his consulting clients read like a who’s who of Online Marketing success, we set the limits, don’t set yours too low!
As always at this point I ask you for your experiences and want to get your feedback, are you part of a group already or are you planning to join one? My recommendation, find or start one today, I can think of nothing that will power you forward faster than a Mastermind Group
Filed under My Online Journey by on Feb 21st, 2011. 11 Comments.
Positive Thought
Is Just Positive Thought Enough To Make You Extra Money
I attended our monthly Mastermind group on Saturday, something which usually inspires me, the chance to get together with your peers and catch up on the latest ideas has to be valuable, this one I thought was going to be different, our speaker was one of the worlds leading NLP guys and his message was based around the power of Positive Thought
Why did I think it was going to be different? well I went with an open mind to something I wasn’t completely sold on, I’ve tried those subliminal message type things where you sit down, close your eyes and wait to be transformed and I’m still waiting, maybe what I had wasn’t right, or maybe I just didn’t understand the Positive Thought message in it
The speaker soon turned his attention to me and my professional sport background and asked me about my experience of winning and finishing nowhere, I related my experience of feeling bomb proof one day and of losing interest when things weren’t working another day, he had demonstrated that Positive Thought is very powerful just by drawing that out of me
For those of you not yet in a Mastermind group I would suggest you read my post from Nov 3rd In it I talk about the motivating power of the group, the way it develops accountability, the ability to help and be helped, don’t reinvent the wheel somebody has already done and he or she will gladly help you to do the same, so a live example of positive thought
Do We Really Need More Than Just Positive Thought
So do we really need more than just Positive Thought? In a word yes we need action and lots of it, getting out of a negative state is essential but on it’s own it won’t do anything, you need a clear action plan and you need to follow through with it,I talked about Online Time Management on Jan 3rd speaking personally I view it as really important and you should too
In the end we are always going to need more than Positive Thought, it’s a vital ingredient and one your going to need help on if you’ve got yourself into a downward spiral thinking wise, as people we are very good at getting in our own way, if only I had more time, if I was just ten years younger, I just need to do a bit more research and so it goes on, they are all examples of us getting in our own way, justifying a lack of action
Sadly we all know that tomorrow never comes in terms of I’ll do it tomorrow, when Steel Magnate Andrew Carnegie set Napoleon Hill the task of spreading his ideas that Hill turned into Think and Grow Rich, perhaps still one of the most important business and motivation books ever written he said this, in my experience a person who cannot make a decision in 60 seconds or less cannot be relied upon to follow through on that decision,Carnegie knew from experience that Positive Thought leads to positive action
So to follow the teachings of these great men we need Positive Thought, we need decisive decision making, we need a clear action plan and I would add from my humble input we need an accountability partner, we need somebody to share our successes and on occasions we need somebody to tell us like it is, to call us when we are in one of those, I’m to busy, I’ll do it tomorrow periods
Turning Positive Thought Into A Successful Business Model
Sometimes everybody has just wanted to give up, having tried to find a shortcut that hasn’t worked, we blame the plan, how is it then that whilst 97% fail the remaining 3% do very well, put simply they stay on track, we all have bad days that’s human nature but the captain steers the ship, he or she gives the crew Positive Thought or sells them a negative story, it’s our call and it’s our responsibility, nobody else will do it for us after all
So to quote on of my favorite personal development people mainly Stephen Covey we must start with the end in mind, if you are not familiar with his 8th Habit I would strongly recommend that you get yourself a copy, he demonstrates the power of Positive Thought and he discusses how to find your voice in a world where everybody is losing theirs, his ideas are so right for today and his message is very powerful
I wanted to finish where I began today namely about our speaker, a guy by the name of David Key, what did I learn from him about Positive Thought? I learned what I guess everybody already knew, words alone won’t do it, but I came away with some extra tools in my toolbag, I need to suspend my disbelief on NLP, to get out of my own way and use his ideas to drive me further onwards, we all know the day we stop learning we are in major trouble, I may not fully understand how but he demonstrated that it works, in sport, in business, even in politics, it’s in my hands now
In winding up today as always I’d love to get your thoughts, are you part of a Mastermind Group? how do you keep yourself on track with all those distractions and obviously how you use Positive Thought
Filed under My Online Journey by on Jan 24th, 2011. 6 Comments.
Mastermind Group
The Power Of Motivation From Your Mastermind Group
I just wanted to look at the power of motivation in keeping you in check,it’s very easy when working on your own to get down,to get off track and to start to doubt yourself,it’s okay to admit it,we all have these moments,that’s why we all need to be part of a Mastermind Group
So how does a group,your own Mastermind Group help? I thought it might help to list ten things that we can do today to get fired up
Function No1 of your Mastermind Group must be to get yourself a mentor,ideally physical but failing that online,I had the great fortune to be mentored by Alex Jeffereys he in turn was mentored by
Rich Schefren you are never to experienced to get a mentor,in every field of endeavour the best people always have one and you should to
Function No2 of your Mastermind Group is to take that first step, sometimes the task seems huge but every journey of a thousand miles starts with the first step,break it down,today,tomorrow,next week,one step at a time
Function No3 of your Mastermind Group has to be your to do list,be crystal clear in what you need to do and the result that you require,remember no clarity equals no result
Function No4 of your Mastermind Group is having got it started is to get it done,don’t spend weeks polishing it,everything evolves but the best people sell that as a benefit,think Windows 7 was my idea,brilliant instead of our customers ironed out the bugs in our system it was Windows 7 was my idea genius
Function No5 of your Mastermind Group is Outsource the technical stuff will drag you down and bring you to a halt,you know what you want now get somebody else to do it for you,it’s a simple time verses money equation
Function No6 and I think one of the most powerful reasons for being in a Mastermind Group is to find an accountability partner,that person who will both reassure you but also give you a firm push when things get difficult
Function No7 and another powerful reason to be in a Mastermind Group is for your R & D not so much research and development as Rip Off and Duplicate,don’t reinvent the wheel,somebody in your group has already done it,let them help you,just remember to return the compliment when you can
Function No8 has to be continued learning,a good Mastermind Group will meet regularly,either online or in person,continued learning with like minded people is essential,for motivation and for accountability,if your in striking distance of London you could Join Us but wherever you are it makes sense to join a like minded group
Can A Mastermind Group Be Fun As Well As Benefitial?
Now so far our Mastermind group has focused on work but you know what you need some fun as well, some reward,taken that first step,reward yourself,finished everything on this weeks to do list? take the afternoon off, remember as a kid we were told all work and no play makes [Jack/Jill] a dull [boy/girl] well it’s still true, we just forgot somewhere down the line
Lastly but by no means least in our Mastermind Group is to celebrate our success,you’ve got your product finished,you’ve got your JV partners to tell their lists about it as well,now celebrate,have some fun and get fired up to start again
But enough of my ideas,why not add your own key motivators by way of a comment,I’d love to hear what keeps you motivated
So hopefully you can start to see how powerful this can be,it motivates, it educates, it picks us up in moments of weakness,so two promises to make to yourself over the next few days,if you don’t already have one,get yourself a mentor and become part of what Napoleon Hill started after he met up with Andrew Carnegie it was the birth of something we benefit from to this day, the birth of the Mastermind group
Filed under My Online Journey by on Nov 3rd, 2010. 59 Comments.
