You have probably heard this quote all over social media “You are the average of the 5 people you spend the most time with.” Is there truth to this?

What is a mastermind group?

For those of you who are unfamiliar, a mastermind group is “a peer-to-peer mentoring concept used to help members solve their problems with input and advice from other group members.” It is a coin termed by Napoleon Hill, author of “Think and Grow Rich”. Napoleon Hill defines the “Master Mind” as a “coordination of knowledge and effort, in spirit of harmony, between two or more people, for the attainment of a definite purpose.”

Why is it important?

In the book, “Think and Grow Rich” Napoleon claims that there are two benefits to mastermind groups. The first is that everyone in the group will benefit economically. This makes sense if you think through it. This is how social networks like linkedin have gained so much success. If for example, you are looking for a job, we know that you are probably a few degrees away from the hiring manager. Tapping into friends that have relationships with other people can increase your odds of getting a job because of the number of relationships they have with other hiring managers. The same is true if you are launching a business. An individual may have an audience of 10 close friends and family members they can market their product to but if that individual had 5 people in their mastermind group, they now have an audience of 50 people to market their product to.

The second benefit Napoleon mentions is that two minds are so powerful that when they cooperate they will create more “thought energy” than a single brain. Essentially he claims that two minds are so powerful combined they create a third mind and that creating mastermind groups are a way to multiply brain power. “Mans brain may be compared to an electric battery. It is a well-known fact that a group of electric batteries will provide more energy than a single battery. It is a well known fact that an individual battery will provide energy in proportion to the number and capacity of the cells it contains.”

We have all seen this happen. It is like when you want to go to the gym three times a week. We all know that we are more likely to stay committed wen we have a gym partner who is helping us to stay motivated, focused and accountable. When we have a problem it becomes easier to come up with possible solutions when you brainstorm with another person. Maybe they are thinking about the problem from a different angle and their thought process helps you to generate ideas or visualize different scenarios you may not have thought of otherwise. We’ve all heard the saying “If you want to go quickly, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” and this is precisely what Napoleon Hill is talking about.

Who should be a part of your mastermind?

Anyone who has similar goals, passions, or interests should be a part of your mastermind. Essentially the goal of a mastermind is to surround yourself with people who help you to improve in all areas of your life. These should be people you enjoy speaking to and spending time with and people you ultimately feel you can learn something from. Diversity in your group is important and beneficial. It is an advantage if people have different experiences or areas of expertise. This often leads to creative solutions and unique perspectives.

How do you find people that should be a part of this mastermind group?

If you know people who have similar passions and goals, congratulations! But if you are like most of us you probably have to go out and find people that fall within this category.

In 2018, I’ve been working on creating a mastermind group. Tips and tricks on where to find potential members of your mastermind:

Social Media – I think often we forget about the social aspect of social media. Take instagram for example, everyone wants to put up great content and increase their following but social media is a great way to find people who have similar interests, hobbies, and passions. In 2018, I’ve become increasingly interested in photography and have wanted to learn more. I came across a photographer on the explore page. I really liked his page because he broke down what kind of camera he used, and included information on the focal length, f-stop, ISO, and shutter speed. I decided to reach out to him to see if he would be open to connecting and teaching me what he knows about photography. He replied back to me and has been a great resource for learning.

Networking Events & Workshops – Attending networking events and workshops are great ways to expand your network and to meet people who have similar interests. In 2018, I attended a workshop (which I found out about through instagram) and attended it. This workshop played a huge role in goal setting and planning for 2018. After attending the workshop, I met a few people that I have added to my “mastermind” group. I even left the workshop with an accountability partner to help me stay on track with my goals for the year!

Speakers/Thought Leaders – Who are the thought leaders or experts in the field you want to succeed in? For example if you want to be an entrepreneur, identify successful entrepreneurs you wan to emulate. Do some research on them. Follow them on social media to see who they are following. Read up on their biographies, read any books they’ve written, or podcast interviews they’ve been apart of. Learn about the community organizations they are involved in, and learn about the books they like to read. More often than not, this will help you to understand more about them and how they achieved success. It will help you to learn about their habits, where they seek advice or what tools they use to draw inspiration from. This in turn, will help you to do the same.

Get Active – If you want to meet a group of people who have a very specific interest, another method is to meet people while you are DOING that activity. For example, if you want to meet people interested in fitness, you might want to join Crossfit, or a sports league or a running club. If you are interested in meeting people who want to give back to their community, you will most likely meet those people while actually volunteering. There are also tons of resources online to help you meet people with a particular interest. There are Facebook groups and websites like meetup.com that can help you find people with passions that align with yours.

Take Action – I encourage you to start creating a mastermind group now! Consider your goals and what type of person would be most qualified to help encourage and advise you to reach your goal. Then make an effort to reach out to that person. Tell them about the goal you have and ask them about any goals they might want to accomplish over the next 6 months to a year. Decide you will commit to communicating and helping each other to reach those goals. This will be the person you can turn to should you experience any struggles.