I think 3 out of 4 of my entrepreneurial friends and connections are part of at least a few “mastermind” groups or professional networks. Most of those people feel pretty strongly about it, too. I’ve lost count of how many people have told me over hot beverages that “being part of {Group X} really helped me overcome {Problem Y}”. The other benefit I keep hearing about is accountability. Both of those benefits are pretty dang appealing.
On top of that, I’m sure there are countless other benefits I’m not enumerating here.
Nonetheless, I’ve always been hesitant to join (or even visit) any of these groups. While I’m part of a few online analogs (mostly on Facebook), I seldom check out the posts there; it fact, I’ll admit that seeing the notifications for new discussions activates a stress response, just a little bit. I’m really not sure why — I should look into that.
For the past few months, I’ve felt guilty about not 1) joining or at least checking out some of these groups and 2) participating in the ones I’m already a part of. Am I not doing my job as CEO by not seeking out advice from these sources? How much am I not learning? Am I not making valuable business connections?
However, it’s over the last few weeks that I’ve started reframing how I think about advice, insights, or tips from other founders and entrepreneurs (especially in relation to marketing agencies).
UpBuild is essentially the product of my experiences witnessing how companies I’ve worked for have operated. I’ve seen great things happen and have tried to distill what conditions led to those outcomes arising. But to a much greater degree, I’ve seen all kinds of decisions and attitudes that have produced results ranging from poor to terrible. The scary thing is that a lot of things from the latter group produced the desired result for the agency owners — a higher close rate, faster growth, “better” clients”, a lucrative exit event. What always captured my attention as an observer was how hitting those goals impacted the entire company, specifically the people. Spoiler alert: it wasn’t necessarily a good thing.
This is a huge can of worms that I’d be best served to not open now. But my point is (to the extent that this post has a point) that maybe I shouldn’t worry so much about missing out on the advice of mastermind groups and entrepreneurial organizations. UpBuild’s success has already exceeded my wildest dreams because I’ve actively disregarded nearly all of the “successful agency” advice I’ve ever been given. Maybe I’ll just stick to reading my books, helping my team do awesome work, and amplifying what’s made us great since 2015. Sorry, EO — I’ll hold onto my $2,150 (plus $2,200 initiation fee) for now.
Discussions