This Partner of a Cannabis Private Equity Firm Invests Over $43,000 Per Year In Mastermind Groups and Online Communities. Here's Why.
Late last week, I got an email from Codie Sanchez, Managing Director of a $150M+ cannabis growth equity fund and creator of the Contrarian Thinking newsletter.
In the write-up, she described the power of online communities and mastermind groups similar to Meeting of the Minds and revealed why she invests over $43,300 during most years to join these networks and attend their events.
“I’ve brought in more investors, more deals, learned more, experienced more and achieved more through these humans than any four year degree where they charge you $60k a year—by far. I started [Unconventional Acquisitions] because of one [mastermind], most of my friends are now from them, I’ve hired from almost all of them, I’ve raised millions from them and while I try to add value, I’ve gotten 100x in return. This has little to do with my competence and much to do with what happens in ‘tribes.’
In fact my brother is quite successful in finance in LatAm, and he asked me, “How do I meet other like minded go getters, I’m too slammed with work and I don’t have the time?” I replied, “Join some masterminds.” No faster way to get in the right crowd.
If you are the average of the 5 people you surround yourself with, paying to increase the sophistication of your network, and learn from their mistakes, is priceless.
Below, I break down (at a high-level):
what mastermind groups are,
how exactly they can be valuable to you and your business,
and what the potential ROI could be for you and your business if you were to join one (such as Meeting of the Minds, wink wink).
What Are Mastermind Groups Exactly?
In my favorite book of all time The Law of Success, author Napoleon Hill (yes…he’s the same guy who also wrote Think and Grow Rich) first coined the concept to describe peer-to-peer mentoring groups where members solve their pressing problems with input and advice from other members.
Almost 100 years ago, the likes of Henry Ford, Thomas Edison, Teddy Roosevelt, John D. Rockefeller, Andrew Carnegie, Charles Schwab, and others were part of mastermind groups and, you could argue, that much of their success came from being around other brilliant minds during the formative years of their empire-building efforts.
Most groups have a cadence for meeting, whether it’s weekly, monthly, or quarterly…
…and half-day, full day, or weekend-long gatherings in-person plus potentially some online events and asynchronous group areas on Facebook or email.
The main difference between groups is the quality of curation, the content and industry focus of the community, and how the mastermind experiences are actually executed from a group engagement and agenda-structuring standpoint.
For example, while the Young Professionals Organization (YPO) focuses on founders and chief executives of companies that are $5M+ in revenue, and skews male and 40+ age-wise, meeting monthly for “forums” among 8-12 people for a half day, our network Meeting of the Minds has monthly two-day “Deep Dives” via Zoom and quarterly 2.5 day summits in-person with anywhere from 25-50 people on average.
We also focus on bootstrapped founders of companies generating $500K-$5M/year in revenue, but unlike YPO we don’t have a hard-and-fast cutoff for entrepreneurs who are not yet at the $500K+ in annual revenue mark. Based on character and future growth, we’ve allowed in individuals who are generating less than $500K per year, and we’ve also welcome folks running $1B+ name-brand tech companies.
We also don’t teach any set curriculum, and bring in as diverse of a community as possible, whereas other masterminds strategically focus on serving only real estate entrepreneurs, or only e-commerce talents, or direct response copywriters, etc.
How Can I Benefit From A Mastermind?
Below are 8 examples of the many ways in which Meeting of the Minds attendees, members, and alumni benefit from working with us.
NOTE - many of the same benefits could be found in some of our brother, sister, and cousin communities ranging from YEC to Genius Network, EO, YPO, Summit Series, Trends, and Tiger 21.
Generate New Business Opportunities.
The founder of an Apple Watch Band business generating 7 figures in revenue annually hired a marketing consulting firm with experience assisting major brands like Universal Studios, Disney, Kodak, and Warner Brothers.
They met at one of our Deep Dives and both enjoyed the opportunity to collaborate, even connecting in-person despite living in Texas and Florida.
Other “Minds” connected as early as our very first summit in Jan 2018 and bought a company together this August, which may lead to millions of dollars in bolstered net worth should they build and sell the company in coming years.
Save Money (and therefore Increase Profitability).
The founding team member of a personal brand-building firm (with clients like Lewis Howes, Kevin Harrington from Shark Tank, and others) used tax-savings strategies from our initial VIP Day to kickoff her membership to save her company 6-figures in her first year of membership, leading to a more profitable year for her company.
These “tips” and other strategies she learned during her membership allowed her to hire at least three new team members and increase her own salary so she could buy a new home and have even more financial comfort when starting a family.
Develop Win-Win Partnerships
An Emmy award-winning animator of hit shows like Scooby Doo and Muppet Babies explored a partnership with one of the co-creators of the Global Citizens Festival after one of our summits.
Personally, I have been working in “stealth mode” with 3 different MOTM alumni on a “spin-off” business to Meeting of the Minds, and there’s countless other partnerships that have been explored or created through our mastermind.
Save Time (and Avoid Costly Mistakes By Learning From Others).
The founder of a growing, 7-figure language-learning startup attended one of our quarterly summits in Bermuda with the idea of selling a small piece of his company in order to bootstrap another venture.
After being on the “hot seat” and during various one-off discussions with fellow Minds, he decided to retain all the equity in his business and NOT pursue the risky new venture, which saved him hundreds of thousands of dollars since his business has grown tremendously during the pandemic and months (if not years) of time in chasing the other venture which was a shiny object but nothing of a “sure thing”.
Diverse Perspectives Inspire New Ways of Thinking.
Several family business owners, especially CEOs who are 2nd or 3rd generation and learned/worked under their parents, have joined Meeting of the Minds to connect with first-generation entrepreneurs from different industries and backgrounds.
If nothing else, this provided fresh inspiration, new ways of thinking, and a reprieve from environments where “slow and steady” may be called for to protect family legacies, but might actually hinder the growth and stability of those firms long-term.
Launch Your Products, Services, or New Businesses.
Several attendees of Meeting of the Minds have launched books and gained bulk sales, press, and other opportunities with the help of our network. Nonprofits have leveraged our network to set up pitch events and raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for meaningful causes.
Like the PayPal Mafia (i.e. the company’s first 20 employees, which included Elon Musk, Reid Hoffman, and Peter Thiel, who went on to start hundreds of new companies as co-founders and investors in one another’s ideas) we are better together.
Enjoy Empowerment, Breakthroughs, and Meaningful Mindset Shifts.
The co-founder of a consulting firm with millions in revenue attended his first Meeting of the Minds while dealing with a disgruntled partner.
He and a third partner, who were on good terms, decided to remove the troublesome shareholder after attending Meeting of the Minds and realizing that he had the ability to successfully run his company (and create other exciting ventures) without succumbing to the drama and pain he’d be dealing with before joining our network.
Build Lifelong Friendships.
Perhaps the most common “benefit” we hear from Meeting of the Minds attendees is that they’ve met lifelong friends as a result of our Deep Dives, Quarterly Summits, and Annual Memberships.
By curating high-integrity individuals who are like-minded in their visions and want to contribute to the success of others (yet who are diverse enough to bring unique experiences, ideas, and personality quirks to the table), we have created something that will live on for decades in Meeting of the Minds because of the deep, meaningful connections created at our summits and Deep Dives.
What’s the ROI If I Were To Invest In Joining One (or More) Of These Paid Communities?
There are a LOT of options for you if you’re considering joining an online community and/or mastermind group.
Most of the “super-connectors” I know are part of multiple groups, and for comparison’s sake, the range of membership dues for networks of similar quality, meeting cadence, and member type to ours is $12K - $100K per year.
We are on the lower end of that spectrum, but first…
Anyone that is invited to become an annual member of Meeting of the Minds must attend either a Deep Dive ($499 - $799) or quarterly summit ($3,000).
For these experiences, we offer a “More Than Money Back” guarantee, and the ROI comes from both the connections made and lessons learned from your peers.
As Codie articulated above, the value in ONE great business partnership, referral, introduction to a trusted adviser such as a lawyer, meditation, or accountant, or breakthrough idea that can save you time and money in your business growth is worth many YEARS of membership in terms of ROI.
In her email last week, she continued…
“I like to compare these groups to being at a continuous party you can pop in and out of, where you largely never have to engage with someone you don’t like, no feigning interest in boring small talk nonsense, a place where everyone is interesting (to you), and you get REAL value out of the interactions.”
For me, it comes down to 5 main reasons for getting involved in a mastermind...
Curated Connections - The success of your business (and the quality of your life!) is a direct result of the people you meet and how much you learn from them.
Diverse Perspectives - Many of our members are world-class consultants, B2B service providers, and subject matter experts in their own industries who want to see you succeed, and are committed to offering you their accountability, empathy, and resourcefulness in solving pressing problems for you and your business. In a trusting and confidential environment, you can also get valuable constructive criticism from people who know and care about you.
Breakthroughs - You are the mad scientist, generational genius, or world-class craftsman we see as “10 years from titan” in your industry. Because of this, all your need is one idea, connection, or “ah-ha” moment from a mastermind group to generate an overwhelming ROI and bring your visions to life more quickly. Regularly, we see our “Minds” leave one of our summits or Deep Dives and generate tens (or even hundreds) of thousands of dollars in new revenue, create new partnerships, shift day-to-day strategies for marketing, sales, business operations, personal branding, etc.
Facilitated Follow-Ups - Many of these high-end masterminds, ours included, actually facilitate engagement and connection among members to ensure that you continue benefitting from these communities in between the in-person and virtual events.
Scale - Not only will you make more money as a result of mastermind groups such as Meeting of the Minds, but you will save countless hours, days, weeks, months, and even years of time in choosing the best paths forward, hiring top talent, executing on your goals, mapping out effective Standard Operating Procedures, etc. Once you learn top business models, marketing and sales strategies, and “best practices” from other industries, you’ll be able to out-innovate your competitors, better serve your Ideal Customers, and leave a positive, lasting legacy.
I’d love to know…
Are you part of any paid, high-end mastermind groups and/or online communities?
Why or why not?
If you’re interested in learning more about Meeting of the Minds, certainly shoot me a reply email or visit our website: motm.co.
And if you’d like to learn about other groups that I didn’t mention above, to see if there’s another community that you should apply for in addition to MOTM and/or instead of our group, I’m happy to share my candid thoughts with you as well.
Now is NOT the time to “go it alone” when we’re stuck at home quarantining.
Now is the BEST time to develop deep, meaningful connections with other entrepreneurs who want to see you succeed, can help you navigate these trying times, and can work with you to identify new opportunities to grow your business.
Now…go have a great week :).
-Jared
Jared Kleinert is the founder of Meeting of the Minds (motm.co), as well as a TED speaker, 2x award-winning author, and USA Today's "Most Connected Millennial".
Meeting of the Minds curates "super-connectors" and subject matter experts as invite-only attendees to 3 day summits in places like Napa Valley, Bermuda, and elsewhere, as well as “deep dives” such as this Marketing and Biz Dev strategy & implementation workshop. Members of the MOTM network include CEOs of 7, 8, and 9-figure businesses, creators of globally-recognized brands and social movements, New York Times bestselling authors, founders of pre-IPO tech unicorns, c-suite execs from Fortune 500 companies, and others.
Jared's career began at 15 years old when he started his first company, and took off at 16 while working as the first intern, and then one of the first 10 employees, for an enterprise SaaS company called 15Five, which today has raised over $40M and has almost 2000 forward-thinking companies as monthly recurring clients.
Later, Jared would become a delegate to President Obama's 2013 Global Entrepreneurship Summit in Malaysia, write multiple books including the "#1 Entrepreneurship Book of 2015", and speak at TED@IBM the day before he turned 20.
As a highly-sought after keynote speaker and consultant, Jared’s clients range from organizations like Facebook, Samsung, Bacardi, Estee Lauder, IBM, Cornell, Berkeley, AdAge, and the National Speakers Association. His insights on entrepreneurship, networking, marketing, and business development have been featured in Forbes, TIME, Harvard Business Review, Fortune, NPR, Entrepreneur, Mashable, Fox Business and more.
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