No! Don't go in there! Daddy's working.
Jonathan: Yes, yes, y'all, you're tuning into Daddy's Working Podcast. This is for you dads out there who want harmony in the four pillars of happiness, or actually it's the four pillars of purpose. I don't even my pitch here, but I like to talk about faith, family, fitness and finances.
And, today, I'm going to be talking about something a little bit different, something near and dear to my heart, and if you guys don't know this, you need to know this. At the time I'm recording this, I'm actually doing Instagram stories every day and there's a reason for it. My clients ask me about it all the time, Why are you doing this? How's it working for you? And it is not serving a business purpose. [01:06.6]
The entire purpose is to uplevel my storytelling game and I want to be able to tell stories in two to three minutes that impact people, so I practice every single day. If you guys aren't linked up with me on Instagram, look for @riverathan, R-I-V-E-R-A-T-H-A-N. That's where you'll find me. I'm doing stories every morning.
I've got a segment called “Talk from the Park” and it seems to be making an impact and that's why I'm sharing it with you, because if you're not getting in on that, you're probably missing out. And the reason I'm telling you about that is that the idea for today's episode came from one of those stories.
A couple of weeks ago, I was in Strategic Coach for my quarterly meeting and I was talking about how I choose different masterminds, and I gave three tips on how I choose masterminds, and I asked the folks watching the story and some of you listened to this podcast as well, I asked you guys, “Hey, would this be helpful if I gave you more details on how I get more leverage out of masterminds?” and everybody said yes. [02:19.8]
Everybody was excited about the idea. I'll tell you why I'm excited about the idea. This year, we started out, I've been running my business like a crazy person. I just make money, spend money, make money, spend money. Never have anything to show at the end of the year, barely making it by, and I am tired of that. I'm worn out and it's not fun.
So, fortunately for me, I have good friends, good people. I hang out with good clients and the Neelys from Grandma's Wealth Wisdom sent me a book that was on my reading list, and I said, “Man, maybe this is a sign. Maybe I should read this. The book is called Profit First by Mike Michalowicz. [03:03.4]
The general concept is that you, as a business owner, the person that built a business, should profit first. Whoa, ridiculous concept, right? So many of us don't do that and I've been a victim of my own bad money beliefs. Make it. Spend it. Make it. Spend it. And I haven't really been capitalizing on all my hard work, until now.
So, one of the things that we had to do in Profit First was to take a look at where we are investing our money, and Cupcake and I did this together. We looked at what we were spending money on, what our expenses were, where our money was going, and we started breaking down where we were wasting money, obviously, where we could recapture money and, most importantly, where we were getting the most bang for our buck. And what we found is the biggest business booster for us is masterminds and centers of influence. [04:04.3]
Look, if you guys are hanging with the wrong people, if you're stuck in a rut, if you don't have millionaire buddies, then I'm going to help you out today. I'm going to give you the keys to the kingdom, the keys to elevate your game.
And maybe you guys have heard of this. Maybe you haven't. I don't know. But it's from Napoleon Hill and everybody Napoleon Hill credit. His most popular book. He's got a couple of books, but he’s most popular book is Think and Grow Rich and, inside that book, he talks about masterminds. I'm probably going to butcher it, but I'm going to give you the idea here.
When two people get together, a third mind is created. That's the mastermind. And if you look at scientific studies, and I’m studying transcendental meditation right now, and one of the things that they have studies on is, yeah, meditating by yourself is great. Meditating in a group puts your mind into a higher vibration. [05:17.6]
And so, there's science backing this. When you get several minds together, there is another mind created. There's a higher level of thinking. Napoleon Hill talked a lot about that. I don't know if it was a lot, but everybody gives him credit for the mastermind.
But here's an interesting little tidbit. Ten years before Napoleon Hill wrote his book, there was a book called The Law of Success, and in The Law of Success, they talk about the masterminds and they describe it as a friendly alliance of people who support each other with their plans. Okay? So, this has been around forever. Scientifically, we know it works. [06:00.0]
Today, I'm going to share with you, number one, how to find the right mastermind for you. I'm going to give you the tips that I use. And this was what sparked off the idea on my IG story. And, remember, if you're not already following me @riverathan on IG, I'm doing stories every day.
So, number one, what to look for.
Number two, how to elevate your thinking, and this is what a mastermind does to you, because once your mind is stretched, it can never go back to its original size. It gets bigger. It elevates your thinking.
And, number three, the absolute most valuable thing you can take away from any masterminds.
So, let's jump in.
…
So, I was sharing a story with my peeps on Instagram and I was telling them how I choose masterminds. [07:02.3]
There are three things I use as criteria to choose the right mastermind and these three things have never failed me. They work every single time. If you're looking for a mastermind, I highly recommend you use these three, but it's up to you. You could do it another way and maybe you'll end up winning. Maybe not. But these have worked for me over and over and over again, and here they are. I'm going to lay them out for you.
Number one, look at the person leading the mastermind. Is he or she doing what you want to be doing? Are they ahead of you? Are they good people? I have this thing. I want to surround myself with good people, so I like to see if they're generous, if they're givers, if they're doing the things I want to do. Do they have the things I want to have? And that could be a beautiful family life. That could be a thriving business. That could be a Lamborghini in the garage. I don't know. It just depends. [08:07.3]
Actually, nowadays where I'm at with my business and with my life, and the example I want to give, I want to be more generous, and so, that's one of the things I look for now. Is a leader generous? Is he doing charity work? Is he a philanthropist? Because that's actually one of my lifelong goals, to be more generous. So, number one, is the leader doing what you want to be doing?
Number two, who's in the mastermind? Who are the other folks that you're going to be spending your time with? Are these people that you can be friends with? Are these people you can have relationships with? Are these people that are going to elevate your game? Do you want to be around these people? Because, usually, when you sign up for a mastermind, it's going to be a yearlong investment and you're going to be spending a year with these people. So, you want to make sure that the people in the mastermind are people you want to hang out with. Plain and simple. [09:11.1]
Number three, and this is one where I have failed to really grasp, and that's why I'm talking about it here, to remind myself, and that's why I'm giving it to you as a criteria, because I do this more now than I did in the beginning.
But, number three, can I contribute? Can I contribute to this mastermind? Do I have the special skill? Do I have a special knowledge? Is there something that I can bring to this mastermind that they don't already have?
Now, there's a couple of cool things about this one and this is very, very powerful, and I wouldn't share this out in public. I'm sharing it here with you listening to Daddy's Working, but I wouldn't just put this out there to anyone. [10:00.0]
When I think about “Can I contribute?” I look in the mastermind and I say, Hey, are there any other podcast companies in there? Are there any other brand strategists? Are there any other copywriters? This is the main thing that we do obviously as the Podcast Factory, and so, when I go in there, I want to be able to give my specialized knowledge to the gang that's already in there, and if there aren’t already two or three or four podcasters, then I'm not sure it's the right place for me, yeah.
This is a thing that confuses the hell out of most people, when I say I don't go to podcast conferences. It's not that I'm an aloof jerk and it's not that I think I know it all, but I go to places where I know I can contribute. If there's a podcast conference, everybody's talking about podcasting and everybody's a podcast expert, and so what am I going to contribute in that crowd? Am I going to pound my chest and try to be louder than the next guy? It doesn't make sense. So, I look for the opportunity where I can contribute and give the most value. [11:08.8]
All right, so when you're choosing a mastermind, those are the three things you look for—how to choose or is a leader doing what you want to be doing? Are there people there that you can hang with? We're going to talk more about that in a little bit. And can I contribute?
I see people making these mistakes all the time, waiting too long to join a mastermind, not wanting to invest the money. And I'm going to tell you right now, if I had it all to do over again, if I could start back—when did I get started online? Probably around … Heck, when did I just get started in business myself? It was around 2003–2004, when I got into real estate—the first thing I would've done was look for a mastermind and start learning from people who were leveled up from me to speed up my progress. And so, don't wait too long to get in a mastermind. The best time to do it is right now and start at the level you can start. [12:04.6]
I've invested as much as 45k in a mastermind, so I'm no stranger to this, but you want to make sure that you get referrals. You want to make sure that you are actually taking action on the things you learn and you want to make sure that you choose correctly. And how do you choose correctly? We are going to review one more time, and then we're going to move on. Make sure the leader is doing what you want to do. Make sure there are people there that you can hang out with and make sure you can make a contribution.
Next. I want to share a quote with you from Tony Robbins, and Tony is one of the greatest motivational speakers alive. He has helped millions of people. He's a great philanthropist. This quote came across my desk and I share it as often as I can. I want to share it with you right now. [13:04.5]
“Successful people ask better questions, and as a result, they get better answers.”
See, when you're starting out, your questions are lower-level questions and that's all you know. What software should I use? What tool is that? Who are you using to fulfill your mailers? These low-level tactical questions. You're down in the weeds. You're working in your business as opposed to on it, and unless you are a super genius, like I have some friends that are really smart and don't need to get around other people, but I'm not that bright. I don't know what I don't know and I'm okay with that. I own that. And the way I understand the world is I can learn from other people, and that is one of the biggest things I’ve ever gotten from masterminds, learning to ask better questions. [14:03.8]
When I first started, when I did my first mastermind, that was about $10,000 for the year and it was a stretch for me, and I was scared and Cupcake thought I was nuts. I went into that room and there were companies doing 3 million and 10 million, and I was doing maybe 100,000 a year. I was still in the weeds. I was still working in my business.
And when I heard the way these guys were talking about strategy, launches, processes and teams, I thought, Wow, I'm outmatched. Not that it was a competition or anything, but I was feeling like I was out of my league. I was feeling like I wasn't good enough and I was shy. And that is one of the reasons why, in the beginning, I did not contribute, because I felt like I was out of my league. What did these people need to hear from me? Which was incorrect.
If I had it to do all over again, I'd be out there dropping some podcast knowledge bombs and probably would have worked out a whole lot better for me, would have gotten a whole lot more business out of it, because it's inevitable that you'll get business out of masterminds. People want to do business with people who believe what they believe and who are like them. And so, I could have been in there doing more and I regret that I didn't. But I learned and that's why I make sure nowadays that I can contribute. [15:20.3]
But you’ve really got to be, when you go to a mastermind, when you sit in one of these rooms with people whose level might be two or three or four rungs higher than you, you’ve got to be humble. You’ve got to learn to listen. You’ve got to be open to learning. You’ve got to be able to think bigger because they're going to challenge you.
This is a fun little tidbit here. On Mondays, I do calls with my copywriting team. So, Monday is leadership day for me at the Podcast Factory. I do calls with my copywriting team. I do a group call with all of my clients, and then I'll do individual calls. If they need a couple minutes, I'll do some individual calls. But I put one of my copywriters on a special project and the special project is making what we would refer to as power notes for some mastermind calls. [16:21.4]
I'm part of the DM family. I'm sure you guys have heard this before. The Dealmaker family with Mark Evans. The guys in there all paid at least 35,000 to be in there, me included, and these are very high-level players. You can't join a mastermind, invest 35,000 and not be a baller. And I put one of my copywriters on this special project, doing the power notes, because Mark wants to have these calls in a library for us that we can use, because he's just been storing them and not really using them.
Anyway, I put my writer on it, young writer, new writer, fresh writer. I've been training him up. Dude's a killer, love him. And I asked him, “Hey, so, John, what did you get out of this? What did you learn? What was your take on it?” [17:11.7]
And he was like, Man, my mind is blown. The level of questions that people ask, I wouldn't even know how to ask those questions. I wouldn't even know to think that. And it's just got me wondering what's next for me and thinking differently about my business—and this is it. This is it. This is why you join masterminds and this is why I told all my writers, “When you're ready to join a mastermind, join one that stretches you. Join one that you think, Holy cow, can I afford this? Because you're going to get to a higher level of people. If you're not doing that, then you're playing too small.
Really, if you want to grow, you’ve got to think bigger. To think bigger, you’ve got to get around the right people. When you get around the right people, you will learn to ask better questions.
So, the second part on how I choose masterminds and how I get the most value out of them is elevating my thinking by being humble and listening to questions, and stretching myself, getting into a room with players who are playing bigger than me. Players who know more than me, have more experience than me. [18:16.2]
Alright, so before we move on to the next section, here is a quick ask. If you're finding these episodes helpful, if you love the Daddy's Working Podcast and you haven't given us a rating and a review, what are you waiting for? Seriously, I'm giving you all these insights. I'm not charging you a nickel and all I need is a review. Hook a brother up. Seriously, or, or, or if you've already given us a rating and review, why haven't you shared this with somebody who needs it? We’ve got to get the word out.
I want people to be free. I want people to think bigger. I want you to create a legacy just like I'm doing here, and part of that is enlightening people to a better way of thinking. I pride myself in bringing you that level of thinking here at Daddy's Working. [19:11.5]
So, if you haven't given us a rating and review, get it. Anywhere you listen to podcasts, look up Daddy's Working Podcast. Type it in there, and give us a rating and review, and share this with someone who needs it.
All right, I'm off my soap box. Let's go to the next part.
Woo, we're going long here and I want to bring you a quote that is so perfect, as we're coming to the last part of this show.
“A rising tide lifts all boats.”
That’s John F. Kennedy, in case you're wondering, and this is one of the big ones. This is where I see people totally screw up when it comes to masterminds. [20:04.2]
You invest all the money. You invest all the time. You're there in the room. You’re there on the calls. You're showing up and you're taking in the info, and you're not making friends. This is where masterminds become super powerful. You’ve got to make friends. And I hear all the excuses. It's like, I'm afraid, or, Oh, I'm not supposed to be selling. This is not selling. I don't want to poach from the mastermind.
Look, we're all there to make friends, and if you're not making every effort to make friends when you're in that room—what was one of the criteria? If we go back to the first one, it was the one the criteria. Are there people there I want to hang with? And you've got to make an effort to hang with people.
I don't know how many episodes back it was. I can't even remember how far back it was, but I had Brian Kurtz on this show and I actually met Brian Kurtz at a mastermind. In the interview that we did here on Daddy's Working Podcast, we talked a lot about relationship capital, and this is one of the things near and dear to my heart. [21:16.5]
I was sitting with one of my buddies. I don't know if I shared this on the show before, but I was sitting with one of my buddies who is a killer in real estate. This guy is a killer. Hundreds of transactions a year, hustling his butt off. And we were sitting in the back by the lake, by his speedboat of his new lake house, and he was telling me how tired he was and how beat up he was. He said this thing to me that made me feel so bad and it made me reflect, and I want to share it with you.
He said, “Man, I spent the last 14 years grinding and I don't know if I have it. If I lost everything, I don't know if I have it in my heart to do it all over again.” [22:00.0]
And I said to him, “Wow, man, that's crazy. You're so successful and you look like you have it all. You’ve got the lake house. You’ve got the speedboat and everything you told me you had dreamt about.”
I started thinking about our journey, me and Cupcake, and what have we lost at all? Wouldn't be the first time we've lost it all before. I've actually lost it all several times, twice, in fact.
I said to him, “If I lost everything today, I'm confident that I can get it all back in the next 30 days, peak on 30 days. Yeah, right, that's a stretch. I could get it all back in the next three months just from the people I know, just from the relationships I've made.”
And that's that idea of relationship capital. What's most valuable to me is having relationships with the right people, and what I've found is masterminds is a great way to meet people that are at your level or higher that want to give you a hand up. So, if you're not partaking in masterminds, yeah, I guess this is my pitch for you to get out there and get into one. [23:08.5]
You can make friends any number of ways. I can tell you that one of the best relationships I ever made was with Nate Kennedy. He is from Marketing Rebels. He rebranded his company. He and I partnered up on the Real Estatepreneurs show, and I met him at a mastermind, the one that I told you I invested 45k in.
I met him in that mastermind. We didn't know each other. We were all going to Park City, Utah, for a trip, and I was like, Anybody who's coming to Park City early, come join me and Cupcake. We'll hit the mountain. We'll give you a tour and we'll hang out.
There were 30 people in that mastermind. Only one took us up on it. Nate Kennedy. He came into town. He texted me. I said, “Yeah, we'll come get you.” Cupcake and I went and got him. We took this boy all over the mountain. We took him down his first black diamond and we were friends from that minute. That's the way you do it. That is the way to do it. You go out and you hustle. You make friends and you do fun things. [24:04.7]
So, let's do a quick recap.
Number one, how I choose masterminds—is the leader doing what I want to be doing? Are there people there I can hang with and what can I contribute?
Number two—level up your game. Learn to ask better questions, and the way you do that is by being humble, listening and getting yourself in the most expensive room you can afford, so you're sitting there with players.
Number three—and this was that John F. Kennedy quote, “A rising tide lifts all boats.” So, get yourself some friends. Make relationships. That's where the real leverage comes. That's where you get lifelong growth and joy from these masterminds. You can see why Cupcake and I looked at our mastermind budget. It was $40,000 last year and we said, “Yeah, we're going to go ahead and keep that, because that's giving us the most bang for our buck.” [25:03.6]
So, if you're not in a mastermind yet, get in one. Find one. If you need some recommendations, hit me up. Look for me @riverathan on IG, or the Podcast Factory is where you can always find me. Get up on that email list.
That is what I have for you today. This one went a little long, but you can tell I'm passionate about this. So, get up, get out and get something. Love you guys.
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