Million Dollar Support System For You and For Your Business

Whether you are a consultant, coach, business owner, doctor, professional, corporate elite or student, whatever your profession is, moving towards your dream requires taking courageous steps. Making long-lasting changes requires us to create a network of support. Surrounding yourself with a community of nice-giving-good people, committed to their own growth, will give you tremendous emotional strength to move forward.

Napoleon Hill, the author of Think and Grow Rich, changed the lives of many successful business people. In this book, Hill shares the importance of creating and using the power of a mastermind group. A mastermind group is two or more people who come together to help each other toward the achievement of a common objective.

Do you need to improve your public speaking skills? You can attend the Toastmaster's Club. For your spiritual growth, you can attend a church and a focus group. To always be improving your professional skills, you can participate in special interest groups of your professional community.

Whenever growth requires that you move out of my Comfort Zone, can you count on a few special "nudgers" who will help you cross the border out of your comfort zone? Whenever you need to get back to the routine of exercising, do you have exercise partners to bug you until you get out of the door to accompany them to a workout. Whenever you need emotional support, can you call or meet with a few good friends and loving family members who care about you enough to listen to you?

I once thought that certain people are just more disciplined, energetic, organized, beautiful, healthy, fit, emotional stable, smarter, brighter, and higher achieving than others. Now, I am realizing that those who are so good at what they do have not only invested a great amount of time and effort but they have also surrounded themselves with people who serve to support their growth in specific areas of need.

Jack Canfield, co-author of New York Times Bestselling Chicken Soup for the Soul, once belonged to a mastermind group that included a doctor, a consultant, a photographer and another author, an expert in the area of relationship who later also became very successful. They would meet every Tuesday morning from 6:30 to 8:30 before departing for their jobs. This required a great amount of commitment. Jack has shared that everyone in the group went on to unprecedented levels of professionally and financially success.


Challenge for yourself

To you, what matters most? In which area do you need a breakthrough? Can you think of three or four other people with similar values and goals with whom you could form a mastermind group?

This is more than just forming a circle of friends. A mastermind group is formed with a specific purpose. Make your purpose clear to the participants. This will ensure that everyone is clear about the objective of the meetings.

Is it for people that want to keep their marriage sizzling hot? Is it for corporate refugees that want to change their career? Is it for business people that want to get better at communication and leadership skills? Are you all business owners who want to expand your businesses? Are you ready to form your own support group for a personal breakthrough in the areas that matter the most to you?

Spend time thinking and defining what would be the focus goals of the mastermind group. Consider these suggestions:

- Be very clear about the area of support that you need.
- List the names of people that you think you'd like to be in your group, and put in your success journal - By (XYZ day), October X, I will finish contacting all the people on the list. You may be surprised to see how many people would appreciate you taking the lead to help each other to have breakthroughs in that area of your life.
- Your objective doesn't need to be grandeur; the commitment does not need to be long-term.

A few months ago, I was in a seminar of 25 people. I wanted to learn well a new skill. So, I sent out an email inviting people to see whether anyone was interested in meeting together to sharpen that skill.

Eight people responded. Five people faithfully stayed in the group. It turned out to be a relatively easy way to pick up a skill. In six weeks, we were happy with the results we each realized and decided to end our meetings. Since then, we have kept in touch, updating each other on ways in which we creatively use the skill acquired.

From small to big, the important thing is to learn to form your own support system. If you want to go far, you need people around you.

Helen Chen is a Business and Life Coach. She specializes in partnering with remarkable individuals in business to get out of their own way and take themselves to the next fascinating new level of effectiveness and profitability. To receive her FREE ezine with proven tips and exercises to take yourself and your business to a SUREFIRE new level of success, go to http://www.HYCCoaching.com.

In The News:


pen paper and inkwell


cat break through


Action Learning: Its More Than OJT

For centuries companies have used on-the-job training (OJT). OJT works... Read More

Choices in Appointing International Managers

Globalization is requiring companies to make important choices about how... Read More

Project Management - Preventing Project Slips

Can Project Managers prevent projects from slipping?Ask a techie to... Read More

Conflict Resolution Training- When Personal Safety is an Issue

Conflict generally arises by having your needs, desires, perceptions and... Read More

Creativity Management - The Value of Being Prolific

When asked his secret to success, the author Graham Green... Read More

Maximizing Sales through the Ultimate Tracking Software

Every small to mid-sized business owner would love to know... Read More

Why Training Fails

Sometimes when I conduct my workshop on Effective Meetings, one... Read More

5 Steps to Continuous Process Improvement

Part One of Creating Well-Defined Processes SeriesWhat if your sales... Read More

Transparency: A Key To Your Effectiveness

Last month I talked about the Skilled Facilitator principle of... Read More

Challenge of ERP Implementation: Q and A with Rick Maurer

Question: ERPs seem like a good idea, so why is... Read More

What is the Most Difficult Part of an Improvement Program?

Answer: Starting one.Most of us realize that there is probably... Read More

6 Steps to Effective Communication

Effective leaders are known for being excellent communicators. Here's what... Read More

Will a Workplace Bully Bankrupt Your Company?

Safeguard Your Company Against Harrassment ClaimsTwenty-five percent of employees suffer... Read More

Provisioning/User Management System Upgrades: Part I -- Ten Reasons Why Not To Do An Upgrade

Tommy Sherman daily monitors a helpdesk-provisioning queue for a large... Read More

How To Conduct Effective Meetings

Before you call your next meeting, the FIRST step is... Read More

Identifying Potential in Ourselves and Others

If there is someone nearby as you read this look... Read More

Employee Motivation: It?s More Than A Paycheck

Managers often ask, usually with exasperation, "How can I keep... Read More

Unveiling the Value of Your Expertise

All of us have knowledge, expertise, and experience that others... Read More

Tales from the Corporate Frontlines: Human Resources at Work

This article relates to the Human Resource Functions competency, commonly... Read More

Time-Wasting Problems - One Question to Move You Forward

In any organisation, progress is frequently impaired by the time... Read More

Supervisor-Employee Relations: Tips For Managers

Supervisor-employee relations are a critical part of a work place... Read More

How to Beat the Turf Mentality

Want to hear a fascinating story? Let's sit in at... Read More

Burger on a Bun Decision Making

When approaching any decision, it's important for individuals to maintain... Read More

Stopping The Brain Drain: How To Capture Key Business Knowledge Before It Walks Out The Door

The verdict is in: More and more baby boomers will... Read More

How Your Business Can Pick A Software Developer

Eventually, your business is going to need to have some... Read More

Organizational Culture, Creativity, Innovation

It can be concluded with great certainty that certain organizational... Read More

Give Yourself a Boss Day Gift, Part 2: Are You the Position or the Person?

Are you the position or the person?Bosses can lose their... Read More

Managing After Downsizing

So, you survived the downsizing. Your company did something that... Read More

The Key to Successful Performance Objectives

Have you ever tried to drive somewhere without proper directions?... Read More

Innovation Management ? IBM Opens Lid On Its Treasure Chest

IBM, which registered 3248 patents last year, has decided that... Read More

Smart Choices: How to Hire the Best

Your organization's continued growth and success depend on making smart... Read More

Improving Patient Sensitivity in Doctors and Hospital Staff

COMPANY/ORGANIZATIONA South Florida hospital. The CEO of the hospital saw... Read More

Jack Welch--Success Is Getting Back Up on the Horse

A few months ago I had the opportunity to spend... Read More