I remember being at a conference once held at a hotel connected to a casino. I walked through the casino after a day’s activity with a friend, and we stopped to look at what was going on at the roulette table. My friend explained to me that there were all kinds of ways to bet that encompassed different combinations of numbers and colors, and I tried to watch the action to figure out what was happening. I caught on as my friend explained who won what on a couple of spins. On the third spin, she yelled, “Wow!” I asked her why she said that, and she pointed out that the number that had just come out, 22, had one black chip on it. She explained that it was a $100 chip, and the winner just received $3500 on that spin because betting on one number had odds of 35 to 1. For every dollar spent, you could win $35.
This got me to thinking that without gambling, establishing a mastermind course enables a person to realize a good income for a modest investment and where the customer doesn’t lay out a great deal of money. I work with people who want to become known in their profession or in general because they want to help others, and they feel like they have valuable knowledge to pass on to them. I started to work with new and old clients on the concept of creating a mastermind program for their interest or discipline.
I have been part of mastermind groups where you work in harmony with each other to achieve a common goal. You learn from each other, and when a mastermind group comes together, there is an even amount of give-and-take on the part of the participants. You learn from others, and they also learn from you. Ancient Greek philosophers like Socrates and Plato often established discourses with other learned men of the time to hone their ideas and teachings.
As opposed to a spin of the roulette wheel and the randomness of the result, you can establish a steady income by creating a mastermind course that highlights your strengths and knowledge. You offer something to others that is your own. You do have to create the content of the mastermind course and promote it, but once you begin to get people coming, they should be telling others about it, which will bring even more participants. The key, as in almost everything, is that you come up with a well-crafted product so that those who buy into your course feel they are getting more than their money’s worth.
You have to be very genuine in your approach to your mastermind group. You must provide the information that they can only receive by being in the course. When establishing your group, you have to know your target audience, how they would most benefit from working with you, and then construct the course to meet those objectives. You need to keep to the basic concept of any mastermind group, which is that all members of the group work together. You are, in effect, creating a community, and you are its head.
Besides creating an income stream from the course itself, you have the opportunity to prime the pump for future money coming to you. The obvious one is that if you conduct a successful mastermind experience, people are going to be chomping at the bit to attend your next one. It becomes a natural promotion point for any book you have coming out or conference where you are a featured speaker. Your mastermind participants will be faithful followers on social media, go to your website, and will be there for any appearance you might do on TV or radio.
You will have to take the time to construct your mastermind course. You have to decide how to present it, how participants can take part in it, and what technical help you need to pull it all together. If you have followers, they are your main prospects for your first mastermind course. If you are trying to build a following, it is an excellent way to build up your community. Remember the movie Field of Dreams? Kevin Costner’s character kept hearing, “Build it, and they will come.” He figured the voice meant a baseball field. He constructed it, and players from the past showed up, and it led to him being able to save his farm. You can use your mastermind platform to do the same for you regarding the building of a following, which in turn allows you to do more with them in the future. Build it, and they will come!
Leading a mastermind group has a considerable upside. Think about what you can share with others and start planning one today. Not only will you have an immediate income, but you are setting the stage for doing a lot more in your immediate future.