Community & Accountability – a mastermind reunion – TPW168

The support and accountability of other women can improve your productivity. Five women who’ve been doing it for over a year and a half share their experience.

Support and accountability from like-minded women

One of the things I hear often, and have experienced in my own life, is how uncertain we often are about our decisions, about the “best” or “right” way to proceed toward identifying, pursuing, and accomplishing our goals. A lot of us struggle in isolation to figure these things out, and feel like we’re the only ones doing it “wrong” (whatever that means). We may feel frustrated because we know what we want to do, but we can’t seem to get or keep ourselves motivated to do it.

For many of us, the answer might be in finding another person, or a small group of people, who are of like mind and who will give us ideas, encouragement, and support, and will hold us accountable. One answer I found was when I found a coach to work with–once, a trainer at the gym, another time, a business coach. Another answer was when I joined a mastermind group. The sense of community I found there, and the benefit of hearing other people’s ideas, as well as knowing they would hold me accountable to actually take the actions I said I would take, were game changers for me.

It was because of those experiences that I launched The Productive Woman mastermind groups–to create a space where small groups of women could support and encourage each other to take action on their most important goals, whether personal or professional. Seeing the results has been inspiring.

Several of the women who’ve met in a TPW mastermind group have stayed in touch since our “official” time together ended. Some connect regularly in a private Facebook group, sharing goals and progress.

One of the TPW mastermind groups in particular has stood out to me. For over a year since we finished our mastermind, they’ve continued to meet regularly. I thought it would be useful for you to hear from them about why they’ve done it, what results they’ve experienced, and why they continue to meet. This is not intended as a commercial for The Productive Woman masterminds. It’s intended to encourage you to look for this sort of community and accountability in your own life, whether in a paid, facilitated group or simply a group of women you find who choose to create this space for themselves. I am a strong believer in the value of this kind of support and accountability.

I’m therefore delighted to share with The Productive Woman listeners my conversation with the members of The Productive Woman Fall 2016 Saturday morning mastermind group, Joyce, Lisa, Shaunah, Sara, and JiEun.

Some questions we discussed

1. You originally met in a TPW mastermind group last year. Why did you sign up for a paid, facilitated mastermind group? What were you hoping to get out of that experience?
2. Aside from meeting each other, what did you gain from the experience of spending 12 weeks in the group?
3. Why did you continue meeting after the facilitated mastermind ended?
4. How do you stay connected now?
5. What format do your meetings take now?
6. What do you gain from this format?
7. What’s the difference between a paid, facilitated mastermind and a self-directed one?
8. What would you tell someone who’s considering a mastermind or group coaching program?

Takeaways:

From my conversation with Joyce, JiEun, Lisa, Sarah, and Shaunah, my takeaways were related to what they found in a mastermind group: clarity, love & support, accountability, and personal growth.

What do you think?

Do you have a source of community and accountability in your journey to making a life that matters? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below or in The Productive Woman Community Facebook group, or email me.

Announcements & Reminders

1. Don’t forget to check out our sponsor, FreshBooks. They’re offering a 30-day, unrestricted free trial to TPW listeners. To claim it, visit FreshBooks.com/WOMAN and enter THE PRODUCTIVE WOMAN in the “How Did You Hear About Us?” section. And thank you to FreshBooks for supporting The Productive Woman.
2. If you’re looking for support, ideas, and accountability in identifying and pursuing your goals, I’d love to work with you. Visit the Work with Me page on the website to learn more about mastermind groups and personalized one-on-one productivity coaching. New mastermind groups will start in January, but I’m taking applications now. If you have questions, email me and we can perhaps schedule a short call to talk about what you’re looking for. TPW mastermind might not be right for you, but perhaps I can help point you in the direction of a resource that would be perfect for you.

I would love to have your help!

• Subscribe, rate, and review The Productive Woman in Apple Podcasts or subscribe in Stitcher.
• Join the conversation at The Productive Woman on Facebook.
• Your feedback matters to me. Please share your comments, questions, or suggestions.

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