These Sisters Will Have Your Back and Support Your Dreams

Hey sis, is there a business you’ve dreamed of starting in retirement?

Are you an empty nester who finally has a chance to get out and see the world?

Are you divorced or widowed and ready to meet the new love of your life?

Then you should definitely consider joining a mastermind group.

So what is a mastermind group, you ask?

Well, think of it as an accountability-slash-support group made up of your most goal-slaying homegirls.

A curated crew designed to help you achieve the desires of your heart, the concept of the “mastermind group” came from a self-help book published by Napoleon Hill nearly 100 years ago called “The Law of Success,” and later, his more well-known classic “Think and Grow Rich.” Described by Hill as “a friendly alliance with one or more persons who will encourage one to follow through with both plan and purpose,” some of the world’s most successful people – from Bill Gates to Warren Buffett to Oprah Winfrey – have all participated in them, as well as sisters just like you.

Consider 61-year-old Philly-based author, journalist and executive coach Hilary Beard who has participated in masterminds since she was in her 20s to achieve everything from leaving a successful corporate career for one in professional writing, publishing New York Times-best-selling books and even helping heal her fibroids without the aid of surgery.

Or 40-something Chicago-based solopreneur Claire Soares who has used masterminds to help her imagine new possibilities for her multi-million-dollar-earning travel business while helping her manage her mental health and wellbeing.

Or almost 50-year-old Sacramento-based single mom Lainika Johnson who launched her own mastermind group this year after the last of her two children left for college. Her why? To give back in terms of all the lessons she’s amassed over nearly a decade of operating her own successful national waste logistics firm, but also create a safe space for fellow entrepreneurs to fail when they don’t reach their goals as quickly as they’d like.

Of her experience she says “The most beautiful thing about being a part of a mastermind community is that you’re surrounded by people who get you. They understand that entrepreneurship is not always Instagrammable, and that failure is part of the process. It’s a safe space to dream and win big together, but also try, fail, adjust and be vulnerable with ourselves and each other. It’s hard not to win under conditions like these.”

Where can one find this magical group of goal-slayers?

The usual suspects – places like Facebook, LinkedIn, Reddit and Meetup.com – offer mastermind seekers a charcuterie-board-type array of options near and far, as does Google: you can find websites and platforms that specialize in running paid mastermind groups, with annual fees ranging from $500 to $100,000.

If meeting with folks in person is more your jam you can find out about them through local businesses or word of mouth.

But the two biggest non-negotiables of any group you choose?

Clarity of purpose of the mastermind you’re joining, and the qualities and characteristics of the people in them.

There are masterminds for just about every focus under the sun

For instance, many focus on health and wellness, political, career, financial, dating, travel: what is your primary why?

And who are the people you’re most likely to want to share your innermost hopes and dreams with, and then hustle together to meet them with? Claire says people who are not only in a position to help you – folks with diverse skills, backgrounds, and perspectives who may have already been successful in getting to where you want to go – but are also trust-worthy, self-aware, resourceful, open-minded problem-solvers generous with their time and energy.

After that, Claire says, the rest is logistics: Establishing regular and consistent meetings with your team, whether you’re meeting in person or virtually for an hour or two weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly. Consistency not only helps build trust but maintains momentum.

As does joining a group with a fearless facilitator: A designated facilitator helps the group run smoothly by managing a set agenda, time-keeping and making sure all members get an equal opportunity to shine.

Structure helps keep members not only honest and focused: the format should include how you’ll meet (in person or via Zoom) and how often, and contain processes for discussing challenges, potential solutions and offering feedback. Leveraging project management tools like Trello or Asana helps keep things organized.

And ground rules and good-faith agreements keep the drama to nil: Establishing confidentiality, determining the group’s leadership and membership roles, rules for sharing, how you’ll communicate between meetings as well as the overall duration of the group (to include an exit strategy for how folks can leave if they can no longer commit to it) create ease and comfort.

Active and supportive participation are critical for the group to reach its fullest potential: good members show up ready to engage in fruitful discussions, provide feedback, and offer support to each other, offering to assist with projects or meet deadlines, even providing useful contacts if they’ve got them.

A regular celebration of “wins” helps your crew stay motivated and morale high, whether through “praise reports,” the literal showcasing of major tasks checked off a list, or a special retreat to reward you and your girls for your hard work –beginning with the courage and commitment to shift into life changing action.

So now, what do you wanna do? Go out and do it, sis

“[When my kids were leaving for college] I had a panic moment,” admits Lainika.” She asked herself, “‘What am I going to do now?’ I had focused my whole life – even building my business – around providing for them. It was like, now what? Who am I, and what am I doing all of this for? Do I still wanna do this? What do I enjoy, and am I really bringing people into my life who I enjoy?” A few years ago she began searching for her tribe by joining book clubs, travel groups, decorating clubs, painting groups and masterminds. “Mastermind groups gave me a new focus for my business. I pulled a couple of people out of my last mastermind that I call my “business besties” that I talk to on a regular basis and just share wins and losses. I think once you get to this place in your life, you just have to start evaluating everything you've done. Is this what you still want to do? Does it feed your soul? Because at this point [as Black women] most of us have done the things we needed to do, right? The things we're supposed to do. So now, what do you wanna do? Go out and do it, sis.”