You may have heard of the Mastermind group concept and thought, “I don’t think that’s for me” 
or, “I don’t have time for that.” But, what IS a Mastermind group and what can it offer YOU?
Whether you are marketing and selling to Corporate Training and HR, or looking for ways to improve your overall business results, joining a Mastermind group can drive you to higher levels of success. It’s been proven time and again.
What is a Mastermind Group?
The Mastermind concept was published by Napoleon Hill in the 1930’s, as a result of his research studying the most successful people of the day. Napoleon Hill was commissioned by steel mogul Andrew Carnegie to interview over 500 successful men and women, many of them millionaires. His goal was to discover and publish a formula for success that could be duplicated by any average person.
The results included Hill’s “Laws of Success” and later, “Think and Grow Rich”, in which he introduced the Mastermind concept. Today, millions of success-minded people use these same principles to advance their own goals.
A Mastermind group is simply a group of like-minded people working together to drive improvement and accountability toward individual goals…
Napoleon Hill defined the “Master Mind” as “coordination of knowledge and effort, in a spirit of harmony, between two or more people, for the attainment of a definite purpose.”
Hill taught us, “No two minds ever come together without, thereby, creating a third, invisible, intangible force which may be likened to a third mind.”
- No individual may have great power without availing himself to the “Master Mind.”
- When a group of individual brains are coordinated and function in harmony, the increased energy created through that alliance becomes available to every individual brain in the group.
- People take on the nature and habits and the power of thought of those with whom they associate, in a spirit of sympathy and harmony.
Famous Examples
Consider the following historical examples of highly successful Mastermind groups:
- The Junto: Founded by Benjamin Franklin, this group of twelve members met regularly to discuss self-improvement, politics, theology and science.
- The “Brain Trusts”: The 32nd president of the United States, Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR), was known for holding “Brain Trusts” to solve particularly challenging problems facing the country. These groups were made up of FDR’s closest advisors, each prized for expertise in their particular field.
- The Vagabonds: This group included the likes of Henry Ford, Thomas Edison, Warren G. Harding, and Harvey Firestone.
- The Chicago 6: Although none of them had any money when they first started meeting, this group of six men met every Saturday night and within a few years, they were all millionaires. (William Hertz and Charles Wrigley were the most successful of this group.)
- The Graham Group: More than 50 years ago, Warren Buffett began hosting an annual gathering with a few close friends in the investment space. It eventually grew to include business leaders in all industries (including Bill Gates) to discuss far greater ideas.
Andrew Carnegie + Mastermind Principles = US Steel Industry
Take the rags-to-riches story of steel mogul Andrew Carnegie… Using the same Mastermind principles, Andrew Carnegie developed Pittsburgh’s Carnegie Steel Company which he sold in 1901 for the equivalent of $13 billion today, despite knowing NOTHING about the steel industry! He, along with partner J.P. Morgan, is credited with founding the US Steel Industry. So, how did he possibly do it, without personal knowledge of the steel industry??
By establishing a Mastermind group, Carnegie tapped into a storehouse of knowledge in areas with which he was personally unfamiliar, launching him to an amazing level of success, while making him a billionaire in the process!
Carnegie described it this way, while being interviewed by Napoleon Hill,
“Well, if you want to know how I got my money, I will refer you to these men here on my staff; they got it for me. We have here in this business a master mind. It is not my mind, and it is not the mind of any other man on my staff, but the sum total of all these minds that I have gathered around me that constitute a master mind in the steel business.
I have been many years gathering these men around me and building this mind. Each man contributes an important part to the building of this mind…”
What people can accomplish working together is far greater than each could accomplish working alone, because everyone has different strengths and knowledge that they bring to the table. By surrounding themselves with the advice, counsel and wisdom of a Mastermind group, they create a total that is greater than the sum of its parts.
“The person who can organize and direct a “Master Mind” group of people that possess knowledge useful in the accumulation of money is just as much a person of education as any person in the group.” – Napoleon Hill
Mastermind Group Benefits
A Mastermind group is like a personal board of directors, keeping you focused, brainstorming new possibilities and insights to improve various aspects of your business. Successful business leaders often form or join similar groups of five to eight like-minded people. By doing so, they are able to expand their vision, share knowledge, provide/receive feedback, and hold themselves accountable to stay on track and follow through on their plans.
5 Compelling Reasons to Join a Mastermind Group
- Accountability – By meeting regularly with other leaders, this check point keeps you focused on your strategic objectives and the tactics required to achieve stated goals.
- Advisement & Support – Other group members offer their experience and expertise to help advise and guide you, while you do the same for them. People encourage and inspire one another, often contributing to each other’s work.
- Idea Generation – It’s helpful to gain the objective perspective of people outside of your regular business group. Group members provide objective input and out-of-the-box ideas based on their own unique experience…not what they think you want to hear.
- Networking & Collaboration – Great connections can be made through a Mastermind group. You never know who will connect you with that next business partner or client, or visa-versa. In addition, you may find a group member who holds key knowledge in an area of need for your business. They may be the perfect person to help you resolve an issue or to move a project forward to the next level. Likewise, you may be the right fit to assist with someone else’s needs in the group.
- Goal Acceleration – By meeting regularly with such a group, new ideas are generated, barriers are averted or overcome, accountability becomes king, and you move toward achieving your goals faster than you may have thought possible! Ultimately, by nature of tapping into the wisdom of others in the group, your success will be accelerated.
Simply stated: You can achieve MORE, FASTER when working together than as individuals. You see…you don’t have to have ALL the answers, you just have to know WHERE to find them!
Understanding how to apply the Mastermind principle in your own career can make the difference between becoming modestly successful, and becoming HUGELY successful!
So, what do people do in a Mastermind group?
- Share business stories and gain input from others.
- Discuss victories and defeats.
- Brainstorm ideas.
- Ask for help with challenges.
- Share or forward opportunities that may be a great fit for another member of the group.
- Provide and receive honest feedback, advice, counsel and support.
- Refine your goals.
- Enjoy greater success!
Are you surrounding yourself with a “Mastermind” group?
Reach out and join a local business leaders group, or form a new group of your own. Gather together people with knowledge in your industry, develop trust within the group, and meet regularly to realize results. You may be amazed at what you can achieve when you surround yourself with such a group!
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P.S. We will be attending the following conferences in the next few weeks and would love the opportunity to meet with you to discuss your list needs. If you’d like to schedule a time to meet, please contact us directly.
- April 28-30, 2014 – SHRM Talent Management Conference & Expo, Nashville, TN
- May 4-7, 2014 – ASTD ICE Conference, Washington, DC
