What is up with masterminds? Strategical or scam?
Consider the last great campaign or project you ran in your biz. Who did you talk to about it? Chances are —for it to have been so successful —you debated, discussed and dissected it with someone, whether your staff, spouse or successful biz friends.
I say it a lot, but no business is an island. We all need to bounce ideas off with other people from time to time. I've written many times about the five core crews I think each biz owner should cultivate, but sometimes you want to expand on those networks and meet in a more formal setting.
For some people this may take the form of group coaching. For others, it's could be a mastermind.
A whaat??
If your small biz is run, in anyway online, you may well have heard of this term of have even joined a mastermind. If you haven't heard of it, don't stress. A mastermind is basically a group of business owners, curated by a "master" facilitator, who meet X times per month (depending on location etc.) to discuss their challenges, wins and ways forward. It can be paid (usually between $10,000 - $100,000 for a 12-month program) or unpaid. If paid, the facilitator gets the money for their time in curating the group and, if applicable, any retreats that happen within the duration of the mastermind (though you are usually still required to pay for your own travel and, sometimes, accommodation).
Isn’t this just like group coaching, Fiona?
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Nope. Group coaching is usually more structured, with one person (the coach) setting the content, schedule and themes. That coach will teach on their areas of expertise/experience and then the group discusses what they have learned and raises their questions related to that topic. On occasion you may have one person in a "hot seat" discussing their main challenge, with the group (and coach) providing feedback. A mastermind, on the other hand, is curated by one person / group but the actual content isn't always set by them; it's more of a result of what the group wants to discuss from session to session. This may look like one person (anyone, not just the facilitator) talking in-depth about their business issue for 1/3 of the hour, with the entire group giving feedback or it may be one member (not the facilitator) teaching for an entire session. Unlike group coaching, the teaching is done by everyone in the group. For example, Sam may pull the group together, but Sam may not do the teaching at all, or may do it every 6-7 sessions.
So, which should you choose?
Well, you don't need to choose either. Many small biz owners succeed perfectly well without doing any sort of group coaching or mastermind. That said, if you have been looking around at various options out there (and there are a LOT!) you want to consider the following:
How regular is your income? Many masterminds will have a minimum biz revenue required (i.e. must be making at least $200,000 p.a. consistently) and will ask you to share your financials with the group
How much do you want to teach others? In masterminds there isn't one coach, you are all expected to relay your expertise to the group and take on a teaching role at times
How long have you been in business? While this isn't always applicable, group coaching can incorporate a mix of experiences, skill sets and time in business. Many masterminds will have a minimum years in business (i.e. 5) as a requirement
Who else will you be learning from? When looking at joining a mastermind, you want to know everyone in there will be at your level or (ideally) a little ahead. With group coaching you are usually learning predominantly from the coach with feedback, guidance and support from the rest of the group
How much support do you want? With group coaching you often have support between sessions from the coach or facilitator (i.e. my group can msg me anytime on IG and chat via a group slack channel), wheres with a mastermind the "master" facilitator is not always available between sessions; you are expected to rely heavily on the rest of the group in a forum such as Facebook page.
How much are you willing to invest? Group coaching can often be an affordable way to work closely with a coach who you may not otherwise be able to afford. (Paid) masterminds are usually more expensive and you are not guaranteed 1:1 time with the master facilitator (particularly outside of the set sessions). That said, you can create your own unpaid mastermind with biz friends, which is what I have done. My mastermind meets weekly and it has been hugely beneficial to my business.
One last note on masterminds. There are a LOT out there and some are more legit than others. Ensure you do your due diligence and look at exactly what you'll get, who is curating this (including their experience and proven history of results) and who else will be in it. Unfortunately, I have met a number of people in the last 12 months who have spent upward of $40K+ on masterminds that were little more than an ad-hoc, unstructured Facebook Live once a month.