How to Create a Personal Board and Mastermind

Rock Your Trade Show

Have you ever wondered about creating your own personal advisory board but weren’t sure how to go about it? This is the episode that will give you all the tools you need to not only create your own personal board but also help you with getting on a Mastermind. If you need a little extra help along your journey, finding a “friendtor” is the best way keep your momentum going and stay accountable.

Think about this quote from John Lee Dumas: “You are the average of the five people you send the most time with”. Do you feel inspired to be your best self when you spend time with friends and colleagues or do you feel like you are in a holding pattern, not challenged?

Creating a personal advisory board takes steps and to help describe it, think of a house, with a foundation, pillars, roof and peak in the roof. When you build a house, there specific steps you take and here is a blueprint to help you.

Listen to this interview and hear a personal story about why joining an organization like the Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association (HBA) was the vehicle to creating a personal board.

Building Your Personal Advisory Board Blueprint

Foundation: Join, Volunteer & Engage

Join-Find an organization that has like-minded people and go to a meeting or event.

Volunteer-most organizations have volunteers to help run the organization, find one that offers areas that align with your career goals or help round out an area you don’t do in your day job.

Engage-start reaching out to people on your volunteer committee and find ways that you can learn more about the organization and how you add value.

Pillars: Connections, Confidence, Invest in Yourself, Servant Leader

Connections: Once you are part of an organization, it becomes easier to meet people and start making meaningful relationships. Look for individuals who might be slightly ahead of where you are in your current role.

Confidence: Being generous with your time and volunteering boosts confidence. Members of the organization will take notice of you and appreciate your efforts. When you feel valued, your self-worth starts to build and you are ready to take on new challenges.

Invest in Yourself-it is easy for us to put everyone else first. If you truly want to fast track your progress, find a coach who will help you and add accountability to your goal setting so that you achieve results. Add a mentoring program to your career plan to achieve your goals. Attend programs and events to find the right organization to join.

Servant Leader: Remember to start by offering value first before thinking about what others do for you. When you show gratitude, and appreciation for the team you are collaborating with whether at work or in a volunteer role, peers and senior leaders will take notice.

Roof: Personal Advisory Board

Board Selection: Strive to find people that are one step ahead of you. Look for areas that you need advice, such as finance, goal setting, marketing, sales, leadership and find individuals that have those qualities. Now that you are part of an organization, you can look for the right leaders to fill the places you need on your board.

Roof Peak: Mastermind

There are two types of masterminds-recurring groups and one time only occurrence. Whichever you determine is best for you, it is a great way to get an outsider’s perspective on your current challenge and offer out-of-the-box solutions.

If you move to the next level, consider joining a mastermind. Some meet weekly, monthly quarterly or only once. The format is usually fairly similar. I had the opportunity to participate in a mastermind with Katie Krimitsos, the host of Biz Women Rock Podcast. It was an incredible experience and an accelerated way to give and receive advice.

Mastermind One Time Format:

How A Mastermind works. A small group of people get together. There is a facilitator for the group who keeps time for each segment: Situation, Questions, and Solutions. One by one, each participant explains to the group what one thing they are working on and need help. Next the group asks questions and then they offer suggestions. A note taker writes all of the solutions and shares it with the person who is in the “hot seat”. Depending on the frequency of the mastermind the timing for the three segments vary from 4-6 minutes to 45 minutes to an hour.

If you are looking to have continued accountability and access to finding solutions, the best way is with a “friendtor”.

Friendtor- a person who is an accountability partner and cheers you on but also helps you stay on track. This “friendtor” is someone you can informally go to for advice. My friendtor, Susan Crawford and I at the same time every week and it has been an incredible experience professionally and provides great joy personally.

If you are looking to start your own advisory, and are stuck on any of these steps, reach out to me, I would love to hear from you!

Check out Rock Your Trade Show for all podcast episodes.

Resources:

Check out our LinkedIn Group and share ideas and best practices.

Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association

Biz Women Rock

John Lee Dumas EOFire

Chalene Johnson Courageous Confidence Club

Sound Editor

Special thanks to Christy Haussler and Team Podcast