There's a popular saying that says that two heads are better than one. The truth to this old adage is one of the reasons that there are more people than ever participating in a popular new concept called masterminding.
If you haven't participated in one yet, consider finding a mastermind group to increase your chances of success. In one of the most influential business books ever written, Think and Grow Rich author Napoleon Hill wrote "No two minds ever come together without thereby creating a third, invisible intangible force, which may be likened to a third mind."
Henry Ford, Thomas Edison, Harvey Firestone (of Firestone tire fame) and John Burroughs (a famous American naturalist) were co-members of a mastermind group. Their legacies are testament to the power of this invisible, intangible force.
In a mastermind group, your peers give you feedback, help you brainstorm new possibilities and set up accountability structures that keep you focused and on track. By participating you create a community of supportive colleagues who brainstorm together to move each individual and the group to new heights.
Additional benefits of joining a mastermind include: clarity, leveraging the group's ability to produce new and better ideas; challenge; help with decision making; a supportive network, both in mastermind meetings and outside them; new friendships; the ability to tap the experience of others; increased confidence; progress in your business and personal life and a decreased sense of isolation that pervades our technological culture, especially solopreneurs and small business people.
Groups can meet either in person, or by phone. Schedules vary, some meet twice a year, others twice a month. A commitment to the length of the mastermind group is always expected, because like most relationships, it takes time to bond, and to trust others as you help each other move rapidly towards your goals. Most masterminds require a minimal commitment of three months. There is little tolerance for missing a meeting, because of the knowledge that all participants add to creating this powerful, "invisible, intangible force." Group numbers are often limited, which allows members to bond and work deeply on their goals and challenges in a small group environment. Lastly, participants are asked to sign a confidentiality agreement to protect the privacy of every participant.
Intrigued about the concept of mastermind, wanting to join the ranks of Ford, Edison and Firestone? To determine whether or not now is the right time to join a mastermind, ask yourself the following questions:
Are you ready to grow personally and professionally?
Are you looking for a supportive and encouraging community of like-minded folks?
Are you ready and motivated to focus more on your life and/or business?
Are you willing to invest everything it takes to create the life and business that you want?
Can you commit to meeting at a regular time and participating full out?
Does your desire for a fuller life exceed your fear of change?
Are you committed to being supportive, and to keeping the confidences of other members of the group?
Are you willing to both ask for help, learn from your peers and to give as much as you receive?
If your answers to most of these questions are yes, then consider joining a mastermind. You won't regret it.
Kathy Santini, the CEO of Savvy About Success knows that success leaves clues, making it easy to model and replicate. She takes the mystery out of success by showing success-oriented individuals and business owners how to be more successful by teaching them what successful people know and do.
As a coach/educator, Kathy offers coaching, group coaching and mastermind programs, and hosts teleseminars and telesummits on the subject of success.
To learn more about her offerings, to subscribe to her weekly Ezine, full of success tips or to get your own copy of her FREE report, 101 Ways to Become More Successful - Learn What Successful People Know and Do visit http://SavvyAboutSuccess.com
Kathy's expertise has been profiled in Canada's national newspaper, The Globe and Mail, on Canada's national broadcaster, CBC Radio; in newspapers across North America and on radio stations across Canada. She is a former coaching columnist for The Business Examiner Newspaper and Exceptionalife Magazine, has written guest columns and articles for various publications and been a guest on numerous TV programs.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Kathy_Santini
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Mastermind Groups - The Benefits of Masterminding
Mastermind groups have been a popular subject of discussion since Napoleon Hill wrote about them in his famous book, Think and Grow Rich. A mastermind group is a forum in which goals may be made manifest with greater speed and in greater measure than would be possible were its members to conceive and pursue them separately.
Such a group exists for more than the fulfillment of simple goals, however. It's about challenging its members to expand and grow who they are. A successful mastermind group produces a consistent experience whereby its members come to know themselves as better people, capable of more than they ever would have imagined previously.
However, the word "mastermind" has been misused and come to identify with an inaccurate picture. It's not intended to depict the idle discussion of "someday" fantasies, nor are they for simple brainstorming. While the discussion of ideas is one component of a mastermind group, more critical is the framework for bringing them into tangible reality.
Masterminding is also not to be confused with a simple accountability group, such as a group of individuals who hold each other to account to show up at the gym five times per week for their workouts. Mastermind groups also generate by design one other critical element: inspiration. Inspiration and accountability go hand in hand. Without consistent action, no one is likely to remain inspired very long. Without a spark of inspiration, little action is likely to occur.
The structure of a mastermind group is unimportant if these intentions and principles are kept at the forefront. A mastermind group can be virtually any shape or size. A Toastmasters club, a business networking group, a network marketing business, a 12-step addiction recovery group, or any other group of people can all employ the principles of masterminding without changing a thing about their existing structure.
All that's needed is to periodically ask some fundamental questions about the mastermind.
Do I know the personal goals of everyone in this group?
Do I see measurable steps being taken toward the fulfillment of those goals?
Does it appear that this group continues to inspire its members day after day?
If the answer to those questions is "no," look to see what you could bring to the table to change that. Or, consider leaving the group.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dave_Baldwin
Such a group exists for more than the fulfillment of simple goals, however. It's about challenging its members to expand and grow who they are. A successful mastermind group produces a consistent experience whereby its members come to know themselves as better people, capable of more than they ever would have imagined previously.
However, the word "mastermind" has been misused and come to identify with an inaccurate picture. It's not intended to depict the idle discussion of "someday" fantasies, nor are they for simple brainstorming. While the discussion of ideas is one component of a mastermind group, more critical is the framework for bringing them into tangible reality.
Masterminding is also not to be confused with a simple accountability group, such as a group of individuals who hold each other to account to show up at the gym five times per week for their workouts. Mastermind groups also generate by design one other critical element: inspiration. Inspiration and accountability go hand in hand. Without consistent action, no one is likely to remain inspired very long. Without a spark of inspiration, little action is likely to occur.
The structure of a mastermind group is unimportant if these intentions and principles are kept at the forefront. A mastermind group can be virtually any shape or size. A Toastmasters club, a business networking group, a network marketing business, a 12-step addiction recovery group, or any other group of people can all employ the principles of masterminding without changing a thing about their existing structure.
All that's needed is to periodically ask some fundamental questions about the mastermind.
Do I know the personal goals of everyone in this group?
Do I see measurable steps being taken toward the fulfillment of those goals?
Does it appear that this group continues to inspire its members day after day?
If the answer to those questions is "no," look to see what you could bring to the table to change that. Or, consider leaving the group.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dave_Baldwin
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