If you’ve ever felt stranded as an entrepreneur with an abundance of experience in some areas and a definite lack of experience in others, you’d be a perfect candidate for a Master Mind group. These groups have existed for thousands of years, but the phrase ‘Master Mind’ was made a common reference in business circles by Napoleon Hill in his book, “Think and Grow Rich”.

With the onset of entrepreneurship in the twenty-first century, many people are walking out the doors of the traditional office environment and into the realm of self-employment. However, along with all of the benefits of entrepreneurship come some of the following challenges:

• Insecurity

• Too Many Distractions

• No External Accountability

• Lack of Collaboration

Enter the Master Mind group. This is a group of mutually supportive, mutually accountable professionals that realize the value of collective thought and of caring, but firm accountability. They meet regularly to review goals and achievements along the path to those goals. They provide input, insight and critique that strip away the polish of each other’s plans. They then closely examine the supporting evidence to ensure that success is assured rather than hoped for. They share ideas freely, realizing that collective thought is far greater than the ideas of any one individual.

Some see these groups as simply Lead Sharing opportunities. But those that take this approach miss the tremendous benefit of insight that a true Master Mind group can bring. As an entrepreneur, leads for people who need your service are a tremendous asset. But the benefits of lead sharing groups are limited. Learning to develop leads through brainstorming, developing a laser-focused presentation of your benefits and keeping your life in balance through the feedback of all the group members is much more beneficial than a simple leads group.

How many people should a Master Mind group contain?

The Master Mind group should be large enough to provide input in every area of life. The collective group should contain a balance of experience and focus in the areas of:

• Personal Finance

• Accounting and Business Records

• Relationships

• Marketing

• Sales

• Personal Health

• Human Resources

The group need not have professionals in each of these areas, as this group is no substitute for Professional representation. But someone in the group should have experiences in each of these areas that they can share and ensure that any plans of their fellow members can withstand scrutiny in these areas.

Many groups have reported that the ideal size they’ve found was from four to eight members. Groups with fewer members sometimes find that one person tends to become the Alpha personality and the group loses its benefit. Those with more members find that schedule conflicts become a challenge and the group is never complete.

How often should the group meet?

Because there are a lot of action commitments made in a Master Mind group, the ideal meeting frequency is once a month. Should you join a group, be prepared for a lot of ‘cramming’ to get your commitments completed by each meeting. Monthly meetings come around all too frequently. But it is a tremendous motivator to a entrepreneur to have that external motivation to be accountable.

What should my group meetings cover?

Master Mind agendas can vary as widely as the people that make them up. Typically, the group chooses certain areas of their lives they want to focus on. Then, each member presents their personal plans to reach their goals in each of these areas. Other members:

• Offer feedback as to the viability of the plan,

• Discuss ideas to improve the overall action plan,

• Explain the resources needed that aren’t discussed in the plan, and

• Offer access to resources to help their fellow member reach his/her goals.

Each member commits to action steps they will take during the next month to help them move toward their own goals. Then, they become accountable to the group to meet those commitments by the following month.

Whether you are a budding entrepreneur or a seasoned veteran, you owe it to yourself to put your own Master Mind group together. If you plan to see your business grow beyond your experience and the fee-for-service advice of your professional counselors, this wealth of experience on demand could be exactly what your business needs to take it to the next level.

So, make a list of the key people that you feel would compliment your weaknesses and that could benefit from your strengths. Now, pick up the phone and call them today. Schedule the meeting that will definitely expand your view of your business and your understanding of business as a whole.