Create your own group!

A few years ago I read the book, "Think and Grow Rich" by Napoleon Hill. I was reading it as a result of a Coach I was working with, who is in a group of professionals I belong to - Kevin MacDonald. I remember being very intrigued by the title and wondered "It must be about guys who sit around and talk about their conquests..." Then, as I was understanding the concept more, I thought, How could anyone grow rich just by thinking?

When I first began to grasp a clue of what the book was revealing about success,  I was also grasping for purpose and better direction in my work.

It's not bad to read a book and miss the point. But if you read a book that is recommended by so many business-minded people and you don't get the point, you may want to read again until you get the point. Each time you read, you will receive a deeper awareness of what is being offered by the book

This past year, from reading the book again, I completely got the importance of having a mastermind team. It's not good enough just to form a team. It is important to take some steps to create the team in a way that builds a solid foundation for complete loyalty and commitment..

Perhaps only Dr. Napoleon Hill can best define Masterminding. He described Masterminding as the “coordination of knowledge and effort, in the spirit of harmony, between two or more people, for the attainment of a definite purpose.”

He continued, “No two minds can ever come together without thereby creating a third, invisible, intangible force, which may be likened to a third mind.”

To put it simply, Masterminding is an effective and practical process to provide solutions to challenges, problems, and goal-achieving through other powerful tools such as creative brainstorming, networking and accountability structures.

What is the core principle behind Masterminding? Masterminding happens when two or more people, in a spirit of harmony, tap into a creative source of power that is many, many times greater than the collective powers of each contributing individual. According to Dr. Hill, this creative source of power is the third mind, the Master Mind, which is only made possible through the pure synergy of the group.

We will gain a better understanding of Masterminding through an example - always a richer source of ideas than a straight definition.

Masterminding brings limitless possibilities to the person being masterminded. You get ideas, solutions and contacts you could never come up if you were working on it alone.

How do you form a criteria for choosing team members?

It would take many pages to fully explain the dynamics of a powerful mastermind team. Here are a few tips for you to consider in your search for teammates:

1. Write down what you wish to achieve, yourself. This goal may be to have people hold each other accountable or it may be to create a new business venture to create a specific minimum of income. It may even be to create a non-profit venture of some sort. It is important that you clearly know what your own intention is from the beginning.

2. Begin to attend business meetings where you get to observe the participation of others. Are they consistent? Do they move the conversation forward? Do they have skills that may make a difference for what you wish to create? Do they express similar goals without having heard yours?

3. Look for people who are successful in what you wish to create. This will bring velocity to your success.

4. Be sure to include people who are at higher levels of success than you are. They will be eager to participate when they see your clear intention and your total commitment to the intention.

It's okay to go it alone. You may achieve a few great things alone. And if you can achieve a few great things alone, imagine what you can achieve with a team of supportive people causing you to have your dreams with more ease and velocity than you ever thought possible.

If you have no failures, redefine your goals. They may be too small. It may take time, but the big goals are the ones that get you up bouncing in the mornings like when you were a child. Remember?

In the interim, LEAD ON!

The Law of the Mastermind Group

The Universal law of Cosmic Habitforce is the title of the final lesson in Napoleon Hill's book about the 17 guiding principles of success. I have covered all of these lessons the past few months by reading them one at a time and then writing about them here - see previous blogs.

Of all of them - and there had been some very logical, sensible and valuable lessons - this one sounds a little "Hippy" or far-out for the conventional thinking of our day. Lesson 17 titled "The Universal law of Cosmic Habitforce", may be interpreted as an early conceptualization of the Law of Attraction. A somewhat obtuse concept to modern readers, Dr. Hill defines Cosmic Habitforce as "the universal law through which nature affixes all habits so that they may carry on automatically once they have been put into motion". Hill states that Cosmic Habitforce is the reason why success attracts success, and failure attracts failure. The law of Cosmic Habitforce transmits the "success consciousness" from the mind of the successful person to the mind of the unsuccessful one when they are closely associated in daily life.

The key to this lesson is this: Whenever two minds connect, a third mind is created, patterned after the stronger of the two – for better or for worse. Many successful people can trace their success directly to the time they began a close association with someone who possessed the positive mental attitude that they were able to copy.

This type of thinking, even a little trendy to conceive, makes a lot of sense in my business. Think of all the brilliant people we, as private club managers, get to be in contact with on a daily basis. I know that each club I have encountered has allowed me more and more contact with successful individuals. I fee eternally grateful to associate and serve these extremely smart people.

Even though Cosmic Habitforce is silent and unseen, it is the basis of everything tangible and concrete. As with all of Hill's preceding lessons, Cosmic Habitforce begins with thoughts, which become habits. A fascinating example of Cosmic Habitforce is this: most successful people have usually experienced severe challenges and failures, which forced them to change their habits. Habits that led them to failure are replaced with habits that led them to success.

Hill concludes this lesson with a review of the previous lessons, and reminds us that these lessons constitute an army – and if any one "soldier" is removed or one lesson underdeveloped, the entire army is weakened.

So that's a "wrap" on my review of the 17 Principles of Success by Napoleon Hill. My next blogging goal is to start writing and getting your feedback on the concept of "Business Networking" - so please watch for future blog posts and give me your feedback.

Until, then, leaders... LEAD ON!

The guiding star that will enable you to profitably and constructively use the knowledge assembled in the previous lessons

The Golden Rule Lesson 16 is a darn important rule to never forget, eh?

Napoleon Hill states that this principal is "the guiding star that will enable you to profitably and constructively use the knowledge assembled in the previous lessons". Hill states that following this law is the only way to apply the power that the preceding lessons provide. The Golden Rule essentially means to do unto others as you would wish them to do unto you if your positions were reversed. Hill stresses the fact that all of your actions and thoughts will come back to you, for better or worse.

Hill tells us that it is not enough to merely believe in the philosophy of the Golden Rule; one must apply it. The key to this lesson is this: the Golden Rule, when understood and applied, makes dishonesty, selfishness, greed, envy, hatred and malice impossible. One must be scrupulously honest, and realize you are punishing yourself by every wrong you commit, and rewarding yourself by every act of constructive conduct. Hill further states that we benefit by applying the Golden Rule, even if it is not reciprocated. How? Because of the positive effect on our subconscious mind, and the development of stronger, more positive character.

Hill concludes this lesson by stating that labor and capital have a mutual and common interest. Neither can permanently prosper without the prosperity of the other. They are parts of one body. If labor is the arm, capital is the blood – and each must care for the other – by using the Golden Rule as a guide.

LEAD ON!