If you work online or network with online business owners, you’ve probably heard about joining a mastermind. Maybe you’ve even been invited to participate in one! Some masterminds are free, while others are paid. And it seems like every successful entrepreneur under the sun hosts some sort of mastermind: Reina Pomeroy, Heather Crabtree, and Denise Duffield Thomas just to name a few.
What exactly is a mastermind? You may be wondering.
Essentially, it’s a group of people that come together regularly and “mastermind” together. Meaning, they share ideas, give advice, and even talk about life in general.
The point is to build community. Community is especially important for people that work remotely.
Masterminds can be short-term, meaning that they last for a weekend or a couple nights. Or they can last more long-term and are usually hosted virtually in a chat room, or locally with your peers (they might even be those small groups of people you see hanging out at the coffee shops from time to time).
5 Ways a Mastermind Can Explode Your Business Growth
Masterminds seem to be all the rage these days, but are they worth it? What are the benefits?
Let’s break down the reasons why masterminds are powerful and can lead to business success (and also why I started one of my very own!).
#1: Friendship in a Competitive, Lonely World
Not a lot of people IRL understand your business. But making friends online can be hard or awkward. There’s a lot of competitors out there and/or people who want stuff from you… sometimes they even want to take advantage of you. Who can you trust?
A mastermind is a safe space to share, vent, rant, complain, and talk about things your real life friends can’t understand. If you don’t have anybody to share those things with, the online business world can get really isolating and lonely.
#2: Accountability to Achieve Your Goals
Statistics show that the majority (and I mean, the vast majority) of people do not achieve their goals.
A whopping 92% of people who set goals never achieve them.
I believe that one of the things that hold people back from being successful is a lack of accountability. A mastermind is one way to bring more accountability into your business.
Have you ever heard that saying that goes “set your goals and keep them a secret?” You’re “supposed” to not share your wildest dreams and goals with anyone and keep them a secret. You should still not go blabbing your plans to everyone online, but a mastermind can be a safe space to share your dreams and what you desire.
A mastermind has this thing where it’s like the cone of silence. Sometimes even who is in the mastermind with you is a secret. It’s nice to have that trust where you can share stuff and not have to worry about negative backlash.
Plus, a lot of masterminds have some type of weekly/monthly goal-setting sessions where you share what your goals are for the month/week and then give updates along the way. This type of structured accountability can really help you get stuff done.
Related Post: How to Easily Achieve Your Goals in Business
#3: Get Unbiased Feedback and Constructive Criticism
Want someone to give you an honest critique of your website? Or share feedback on whether a new offering you’re thinking about is a good idea or not? Masterminds are perfect for this!
You can get honest, unbiased feedback from a ton of different perspectives.
They are more than happy to help you, and will be able to help you discover the right direction you need to be moving in.
Getting an outside perspective in your business is so important.
#4: Collaborate in a Snap!
Have a summit coming up and need speakers, want a podcast guest, or itching to write a guest post?
A mastermind is a great place to find tons of collaboration opportunities like this.
Related: Accepting Guest Posts: How to Create an Easy System
#5: A Network of Referrals at Your Fingertips
Another great way a mastermind can help you explode your business growth is by allowing you to have a whole network of other business owners at your fingertips.
Whether you’re looking for new clients, need help on a project, or want to refer a client of yours to someone in a different field, masterminds are ripe with opportunities for working together.
Ideally, in your business, you want the majority of your clients to come from referrals. This is a great way to kickstart your growing clientele.
Look at it this way… you could be in a mastermind with graphic designers, web designers, coaches, financial gurus — who knows! They could be an expert in one area, while you’re the expert in another. They could refer you, and you can refer them! Clients tend to ask about additional services if it seems like you know your stuff. It’s great to have some people you can refer them to right in your back pocket.
Don’t take advantage of the mastermind, but it’s a great way to build real connections and network with other business owners.
Every mastermind I’ve been a part of has led me to getting multiple new paying clients — either by getting hired by people in the mastermind with me, or from generous referrals from the other members.
At the end of the day, masterminds are fun!
In fact, I like them so much that I started my own. The Biz Bestie Squad is up and running.
If you’re looking to join a wonderful group of women that want to help each other grow into leaders, then you should join up with us!
