How to Commit to and Achieve Specific Results for your Mastermind Group

 

Brian K. McRae left behind his corporate job in B2B IT training to start his own mortgage referral business, achieving impressive results and building a mastermind group along the way. Brian even began coaching other business owners, helping them to master his signature concept of becoming “radically referable.” Somehow, despite these early successes, Brian couldn’t shake the feeling that he wasn’t helping as many people as he could.

 

The principles he taught had changed his life, and he knew they had the ability to do the same for more people, if only he could reach them. That’s when Brian discovered The mastermind Playbook and began to set conscious and specific goals towards growing his mastermind group and coaching practice. Those commitments - and the accountability provided by a group of mentors and confidants - gave him the push he needed to make the impact he desired.

 

Since setting those ambitious goals, Brian managed to double the fees for his mastermind group and nearly triple the revenue from his coaching business. More importantly, he dramatically increased his positive impact on the lives of those in his inner circle.

 

The Importance of Being Specific

 

How did Brian achieve such impressive results? It all started with his willingness to make specific commitments to clearly defined goals. Dan Sullivan explains the importance of specific goals chapter 5 of Who Not How, entitled “Commit to Specific Results.”

 

In this chapter, Sullivan stresses the importance of growing a team and delegating day-to-day tasks so that leaders can make specific, big-picture commitments. Sullivan explains how many entrepreneurs make the mistake of assuming only they can handle important tasks, and how this assumption often leads to a sense of overwhelm and burnout.

 

Instead, Sullivan suggests adopting the principles of transformational leadership to build a team that works towards specific goals. He points out that transformational leadership theory creates better results than any other leadership paradigm today.

 

Check out The Mastermind Playbook for more details on why specific goal-setting is so important.

 

The Principles of Transformational Leadership

 

There are four principles of transformational leadership that any leader committed to specific results for their mastermind should understand.

 

The first principle is individualized consideration. This refers to a leader’s ability to pay special attention to specific people. Often, leaders focus solely on the progress and welfare of the group as a whole rather than considering the unique circumstance of each individual within the group. This can leave team members feeling isolated, unsupported, and misunderstood by their leader.

 

Instead, leaders should do their best to develop one-on-one relationships through which they can mentor those they lead in an individualized manner. This emphasis on considering each individual will improve the cohesiveness of the group and move a leader towards achieving specific goals.

 

The second principle of transformational leadership is intellectual stimulation. This speaks to a leader’s ability to challenge and provoke the intellectual capacities of his team. For many, work days feel dreary, repetitive, and monotonous. A good leader finds ways to stimulate the intellect of the individuals on his team, boosting morale and productivity in the process.

 

The third principle of transformational leadership is inspirational motivation. This principle refers to a leader’s ability to create and communicate an ambitious and inspiring vision that motivates team members. The principle ties into the importance of specificity in goal-setting. A leader must communicate specific and measurable goals to their team when they talk about vision. Otherwise, it becomes impossible to measure and celebrate success.

 

The fourth and final principle of transformational leadership is idealized influence. Idealized influence refers to a leader’s ability to act as a role model for those they lead. In particular, leaders should set a high standard of ethical behavior and honesty. They should set an example for team members by embodying the morals and values they wish to instill in the group’s ethical culture.

 

By virtue of this principle, making specific commitments will inspire group members to do the same themselves.

 

Check out The Mastermind Playbook for more information on how mastermind leaders can use transformational leadership to achieve specific goals for their mastermind group.

 

Why Transformational Leadership and Specific Goal-Setting is Vital for Mastermind Leaders

 

As the leader of a mastermind, you must make commitments to specific results. This allows you to communicate an inspiring vision for the group to your members. Moreover, it will give members the motivation to make specific commitments for themselves, too.

 

After making commitments to specific results for your mastermind group, employ the principles of transformational leadership to achieve those goals. 

 

Mastermind leaders should also understand the principles of self-determination. As a mastermind leader, you commit to empowering others to set and achieve personal goals.

 

According to self-determination theory, individuals possess three fundamental needs. They need a sense of competence, a sense of autonomy, and meaningful relationships. However, this autonomy must be accompanied by the creation of specific and measurable goals. In fact, research has found that groups with high autonomy and low goal clarity perform worse than those with low autonomy. 

 

Therefore, mastermind leaders should ensure high autonomy, specific goals, and regular performance feedback. In this, they master Sullivan’s theory of transformational leadership.

 

Check out The Mastermind Playbook for more information on how mastermind leaders can empower their members to be self-reliant and intrinsically motivated.