Standing Out

When I first joined Biznik, I read an article by Kristen Marie Schuerlein about creating a mastermind group. I wholeheartedly admit that I had absolutely no clue what she was talking about when she said mastermind, even though I actually have owned Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill who first came up with the concept. (Obviously I owned it but never really read it - I tried, though).

If you don’t know what a Mastermind Group is, Karyn Greenstreet’s article on the subject is very informative. You may even be convinced enough to buy her $12 e-book on how to create a for-profit mastermind group (I did). What I really like about the concept of a Mastermind is that it puts into practice the real “two heads are better than one” theory. Running your own business is tough stuff, so taking an hour a month to talk it out with some others who are in the same boat will be cathartic personally and professionally.

Well, if my interest was kindled by Kristen Marie Schuerlein’s article, it was definitely solidified by Karyn Greenstreet’s. I am not starting a for-profit one at this time (although a VA-centric mastermind group is coming down the pike). But I would like to start a “Self-Employed Moms Mastermind Group” - totally free - as a way to develop a team of like-minded moms that can build, grow, and succeed together. I’d like to limit the group number to five-seven moms at this time but I’m willing to facilitate the formation of additional groups if the demand is there.

This group will meet monthly over the phone. This is TRUE mastermind in that the group members set the agenda, spend almost the entire time sharing, swapping ideas, playing devil’s advocate and helping each other succeed. This is not a club masked as a mastermind, where you pay membership dues and listen to someone talk. The point of a mastermind is to participate! I’d like to keep it that way and give our wallets a break for a minute.

So, if you are interested in participating with me, please let me know and I’ll share the details. You can contact me via the contact form on this blog or by going to my website’s contact form.

Cheers,

Tia

RACE TO GROUP A

Ridiculous! This post may be a bit off topic but it just boggles my mind that I just checked in online to a Southwest flight that leaves a full TWENTY-ONE hours from now, and I landed in GROUP B position 19.

WHAT IN THE WORLD?? That really is insane, in my opinion. I was never a huge fan of their strange, herding process, and became even less of a fan when their prices started to be around the same as the other airlines. But now that the prices are equal or higher in some cases, AND the herding thing has taken on a new complication with numbers, I’m not a fan at all.

For me to get stuck in Group B at position 19 means that in the three hours since check-in opened (24 hours ahead), over 60 people woke up, rubbed the sand out of their eyes and checked in. Position 19 isn’t so great, either. That means all 60 Group A-ers and another 18 Group B-ers will get to board before me. That’s a huge bummer!

The icing on the bitter cake is this whole no pre-boarding nonsense. I have to travel with my 4 month old son, and Southwest has decided it’s no longer necessary for those of us with kids to pre-board. Luckily I have only one child. If I had, say, two or three, it’s not guaranteed we would get to sit together. So instead of me sitting next to my crying child, it would be YOU.

So anyway, I’m pretty miffed about this, if you couldn’t tell. This has become an issue of who has the fastest fingers and internet connection. I want to scream at Southwest: bring back assigned seating! Bring back real business class. If you need a method to determine who goes first, reward those who pay extra, not those who have Blackberry’s with high-speed internet and nothing to do in life other than wait for check-in to start.

Cheers.