When you read about the stories of successful entrepreneurs you always come across similar advice: “Surround yourself with successful people”
How do you actually go about doing that? Here are 7 strategies to help you get started.
1) Join A Peer / Mastermind Group
Join a group of people who are committed to running their businesses and taking it to the next level. It can be lonely being an entrepreneur and most business owners don’t have a support network to turn to for help for their companies. Sure your friends and family listen but can they really help? Amazing things happen when you can connect with other people who are really doing things with their businesses. You will get inspired and you will also inspire them to work harder as well.
I run a series of Mastermind Groups in Toronto and we always look for people who are beyond the startup stage. Make sure that whatever group you join that you a) can go for a trial first, b) are with other members who have different skill sets, and c) are in a structured atmosphere where people take the group seriously. Also make sure that you are not the most knowledgeable person in the room. You learn more when you are with people who have accomplished more than you.
Most of the large cities have various Mastermind groups that you can join. If you don’t have one locally, you can also seek out ones that meet online instead of in person.
2) Go To Related Business Events
Depending on how big a city you live in, you’ll have a bigger selection of different business events to check out. Look for ones that inspire you and you will learn from. Quite often they are free. For example, one of my favorite events was when Ted Rogers, founder of Rogers Communications, one of the largest companies in Canada, came to speak at a local bookstore as a part of an entrepreneur promotional series the store was doing. The popular business author Tom Peters also did a great event there that was very inspiring. Total cost to me: $0.
By going to these events you’ll not only get motivated from the speaker but you’ll also meet other people who are interested in the speaker. Chances are those people are also going to be motivated to succeed as well and you can make some great connections to help your business if you keep an open mind. Usually authors with business books do a series of appearances at stores to promote their new books and it can be a great (and free) opportunity to get a few new ideas.
3) Surround Yourself With Famous Entrepreneurs
I love reading the stories of famous entrepreneurs and how they got started. That’s why I write a regular series in this blog. Every time I read a success story it motivates me to do better and reach farther. Even though you may not know Richard Branson personally, you can get a lot of benefits from his teachings by reading his books (“Losing My Virginity” is fantastic!) and listening to his interviews. You can even look up your favorite entrepreneurs on YouTube to get an added boost of motivation.
When you’re faced with an important business decision, or if you’re just procrastinating and putting off doing work, ask yourself “What would Richard Branson (or your favorite entrepreneur) do?” Would Richard Branson be down on himself and browing the web wasting time or would he be out selling and making things happen??
4) Check Out Industry Conferences, Connect With The Experts
Whatever industry you’re in there will always be industry related conferences. Go check them out, do your research as to who the keynote speakers will be and have a few questions in mind for them. Make sure to connect with them before they come on and begin their presentation because they will be bombarded with questions afterward.
When I went to my last Search Engine Strategies conference in Toronto, I connected with the two presenters at the Site Clinic before they started talking. They were just sitting up on the stage alone and nobody was talking with them (they actually looked pretty bored waiting to get started!). After they finished, however, they were suddenly bombarded with people trying to get their questions in before they closed the room to set up for the next event. I was able to make a personal connection with them and get 20 minutes of one on one time all on my own because I went in before the rush. Do your research beforehand, have your questions ready, and connect with the experts before their presentations!
5) Get Online!
Forums like Young Entrepreneur are great places to meet people and have people hold you accountable for doing what you say you are going to do. The downside is that anybody can respond and you don’t really know how successful people are so you have to do some weeding through to figure out who you want to listen to.
Join Young Entrepreneur and post your business idea. You’ll definitely get some comments and advice from the members. Then you can go on to discuss some of your goals and what your timeline for succsess is. Come back regularly and update the community as to how you’re doing. Did you accomplish your goals? Did you fall short? Why? What happened? Doing this on an ongoing basis will keep you accountanble for doing what you say you’re going to do as well as introduce you to a wide network of entrepreneurs who will support you and your ideas.
6) Find Ways To Help People You Admire
Want to make a connection with someone you look up to and potentially get their advice? Find a way to help them first! Do your research on them and subscribe to Google News Alerts about them as well as the industries they are in. Think about a service you might be able to provide to help them out or introduce them to a new opportunity. If you can find a way to genuinely help them, they will remember you and will usually be more than happy to return the favor – if not out of gratitude, out of curiosity (who is this person who came out of nowhere to help me out??).
As an example, there was a successful businessman that I looked up to in Toronto who was not very technology savvy. I met himm briefly at an event and later went home and subscribed to Google News Alerts to stay on top of news in his industry and would fax him (he didn’t use email) regularly on new trends that were occuring. I did this for a couple weeks then called in to ask him if he found them useful. He didn’t remember meeting me at the event but he sure did appreciate the faxes! He was curious as to who was sending him this information and invited me over for dinner. I got a lot of free advice from him (and a free meal!) as well as made a new contact that I can use in the future for my different business ventures. Find a way to help them first and they will help you later.
7) Look Around You, Keep An Open Mind!
Chances are there are already people in your life who can be a great help to you if you just open your mind and ask for help. Do you ever notice that when you buy a new car or a new pair of shoes you suddenly see everyone else with the same car of same shoes? Did everyone else go out and buy what you just bought? No. Because you’re focusing on it, you start to see it in your environment more often.
Your brain can only process a certain number of inputs at once – most of the information it receives gets tossed out but if you set your mind to thinking about something, you’ll begin to find ways to get your goal accomplished. This is why The Secret and The Law of Attraction have been so popular in recent years. Look for successful people and keep an open mind – you will find them. As the famous saying goes, “The teacher will appear when the student is ready.”
How have you surrounded yourself with successful people?
Matthew Toren is an Award Winning Author, Serial Entrepreneur, and Investor. He Co-Founded YoungEntrepreneur.com along with his brother Adam. Matthew is co-author of the newly released book:Small Business, Big Vision: “Lessons on How to Dominate Your Market from Self-Made Entrepreneurs Who Did it Right” and also co-author of Kidpreneurs.
Great list Even. I really liked the one about going to related business events, I need to do that more often. I would also add “pursuing more experienced business people as mentors” to the list. I’ve had alot of success with that.
I have surrounded myself with successful and interesting people by switching career fields. I had been working in the world of non-profits, specifically Public Gardens, for years. I decided it was time for a change of pace, and I sought a job at a company that is not quite ordinary. To apply for the job, I had to send in a funny story before I could send in a resume.
When I went to interview, I was struck by the unusual work setup. We are in a warehouse that holds our administrative people, embroidery and printing production, and product warehouse in one building. Everyone constantly moves between each area, collaborating, interacting and staying in touch with the whole business. We don’t work in cubes, our desks are lined up like an old-time newsroom. That encourages us to talk to each other.
What amazes me about my current co-workers is how creative they are. Everyone, from Customer Service to IT, to Merchandising, to Marketing, to Production has an interesting backstory, and varied experience. We have graphic artists, fashion designers, airline workers, horticulturists, engineers, yoga instructors and more working at Queensboro. This is not an accident, as the Company President, Fred Meyers said at a recent company pizza lunch. He has specifically built his team from the ground up, seeking to incorporate people with wide perspectives and collaborative spirits into the operation, because it will help us serve our customers better.
Whether you work by yourself, or you are starting a small company, your people are your biggest asset. Choose them carefully.
I always try to get in touch with the best in the industry. Especially with social media in this day and age more and more people are becoming available if you just do your homework.
You’d be surprised who you can personally talk to and get advice from if you just try.
Thank you for this wunderfull post. I see social media as a great way to connect with people that are normally out of reach.
Even though your message has been shared by lot`s of successful entrepreneurs it`s still important to hear it over and over again.
I once tweeted “Sometimes we need to hear the things we already know if we didn`t pay attention to the message in the first place.”
I`m gonna share your post on twitter. I believe many people should can benefit from trying your steps.