Like you, I’ve started to think about 2018.
I’m excited for it. I cannot wait to dive in.
It’s a year I plan to make huge progress in.
Then again, I say that every December.
I imagine you do, too.
This month is one of hope.
Often, too much hope.
More hope and not enough action.
But more on that later.
For now, I’d like to talk about the people we surround ourselves with.
I have always tried to surround myself with those further along than me.
It’s this that pushed me to write ‘The Successful Mistake’.
I wanted to learn from those in the know.
I wanted them to pass on their awesome to me.
If you want to grow and move forward, surround yourself with people who will pull you along; those who will challenge you to be better.
And for the most part, this is good advice.
Want to be positive, hang out with positive folk.
Want to make more money, be around those who make more than you.
Their habits and approaches rub off on you.
Plus, they have a lot to advise you on.
However…
There’s also a problem to this approach.
Because although you should surround yourself with those further along the road then you, it makes little sense if they are way down the road.
They should be in sight of you.
You should be able to see them.
They should be able to see you.
So if you’re starting out, struggling to make a consistent income…
… a billionaire (or a millionaire, for that matter) will not help.
They can offer you great advice.
They can inspire you.
You can aspire to be just like them.
But will they help you turn that inspiration into transformation?
No. They won’t.
Because their problems differ to yours.
Their solutions and approach differs.
What helps them more than likely won’t help you.
On a surface level you can pick up lotsa of tips, of course.
But the REAL tangible advice you can use to move the chains… NO.
The people who will help you the most are those further ahead than you, but here’s the key… they aren’t that much further ahead than you.
Those just in front can pull you alongside them and challenge you to move up a gear, but unlike those way down the road, they can also relate to you. They know its like to be going through what you’re going through now.
They get it; they “get” you.
Why?
Because they were you, not long ago.
But those in front are not the only mentors you need.
There are two other types, and they are each as important as the last.
These are:
1: Those in front of you…
As I say, those ahead of you will help you in ways nobody else can.
They have been there and done it, and can offer you insights you would not get on your own (after all, you only know what you know).
But again, I repeat, these people should be in sight of you.
If you’re just starting to make five figures each month, don’t turn towards the millionaire (just yet). Seek those who have been doing 20–30k per month for a little while now.
They will offer you much more relevant advice that will help you NOW.
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2: Those behind you…
This may sound strange, but it shouldn’t come as a surprise.
After all, it’s difficult to appreciate what you have achieved when you’re constantly looking out in front.
What surrounding yourself with those a little further behind offers is a chance to appreciate where you have come from. Often, you will not understand just how much you have learned and progressed until you begin to help those who don’t know what you know.
You learn a lot through teaching others.
You refine ideas and better understand things yourself.
So although you may act as a mentor to those further behind…
… they will also teach you a lot about your own journey.
Again, these people should be behind you, but not by too much. If you’re making those regular five-figure months, surround yourself with folk who are on the verge of doing this too.
You can help them move to the next level.
But they will help you too, that I assure you.
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3: Those at the same stage as you…
We often forget about these wonderful mentors.
We assume they are just like us, and that this is a bad thing.
That because they aren’t ahead of us, they have nothing to teach us.
WRONG!
These people at the same point in the road as us are our collaborators. They are like-minded and usually offer us the most relevant and useful advice there is.
Why?
Because they are us.
They are us, right now.
They may have solved that problem only last week.
They may have only just thought of it last night.
These are the people we bounce ideas off of, and refine what we do. On our own, we’re capable of good. But once we involve these awesome folk, we turn good into great.
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All 3 types of these mentor matter.
They each bring something vital to the table.
As we enter into 2018, I encourage you to think of each.
Chances are, you have a group of mentors already.
I know people who have created a bespoke network of mentors that they can turn to at a moments notice. This is good. However… such a group is often made up of people in a different generation, a different realm of business, and for the most part, a different world entirely.
They advise and help and offer lots and lots of wisdom.
But are they the mentors that bring the most to the table?
I argue no.
Have them in your life, by all means.
Turn to them and seek their wisdom.
But DO NOT expect them to give you the advice you need NOW.
This is what I have done in recent years, and it does not work.
They help… but they don’t provide the right help I need right now.
Whereas those just in front, just behind, and by my side…
… YES, these like-minded peeps are who I need.
This is what I’m doing in 2018.
This is the community I’m focussing on.
I plan to help then, and I intend for them to help me.
It’s going to be magical, and it’s going to create a lot of value.
The question is, who’s going to be part of your tribe?
