Who's In Your Tribes?
Well, there are a number of reasons. The folks in your tribes are typically your cheerleaders. When you’re having a tough day, they will be there to cheer you on. When you are sick or have a family emergency, your friend and family tribes will jump in and provide whatever type of help you need. These are the people you can count on no matter what.
Your business related tribes will be there for totally different reasons. If your business is down, they may be there to cheer you up, but they will more likely be there to help you find a solution or help tweak your course. They will be business problem solvers and trusted people to bounce ideas off of in addition to cheerleaders. These are the folks that will tell you what you need to hear, not necessarily what you want to hear. Or, they may just be there to listen to your current situation if that is what you need; someone to just listen and let you find your way.
People that are in your learning circles or learning tribes will provide yet a different function. In these tribes, you will become the primary “giver”. Your job will be to support and teach them. If you have products and services to sell, they will become your primary audience but only after you have provided great value to them.
Having strong tribes can directly improve your chances for success.
Why is that? Because, business is a “team sport”. You need those folks, and they need you. Successful businesses always have a team. Depending on what type of business you have, you may need different team members and therefore tribes than another person.
Who should be in my tribes?
Almost every business needs a core team or tribe of advisors. For real estate investors that might be an accountant or tax professional, an attorney, real estate agent, insurance broker, and any number of other people to help you with your day to day activities. You might have a virtual assistant, or possibly outsource some of these tasks. Your tribe members might be located anywhere.
An Accountability Partner
Having an accountability partner is huge and should definitely be part of your tribe. My accountability partner and I meet by phone every Tuesday before work. We share our weekly “big goals” and even smaller ones on our “to do” lists for the next 7 days. They are there to hold your feet to the fire and make you accountable for what you did or did not do. You should value this person’s opinion, and you should really dread telling them when you fail to deliver. This person should not be a close friend or relative, because your accountability partner may need to send a little “heat” your way if you start slacking off. That’s their job after all. This person will most likely also be part of your larger business tribe.
Your Mastermind Group
These folks are also invaluable to your success. This tribe may be from your city, but more often than not, they live in another area. In these groups, you want to be able to share completely. The last thing you need is to feel like you have to hold something back because they are your competitors.
Mastermind groups are great tribes to help you with new ventures, to create products, and just to grow your business in general. They are great places to bounce ideas off of folks. Even though you might be in the same business, you will most certainly have different skill sets and experiences. I once belonged to a mastermind group where I was the only person in real estate investing. While these folks where quite willing to help, they really didn’t understand my industry or its challenges. For me, that group just didn’t work. That’s why I strongly believe that it is better for your mastermind tribe to be in the same general industry, but not in the same location.
Your Tribe of Online Followers
These folks can come from many different places. Some of these might be:
- Your blog subscribers
- Twitter & Facebook followers
- LinkedIn Associates
- People you have sold products and services to
- Folks from your membership sites
- Or people that ended up on one of your webinars
What is your role in your tribes?
If you have a strong message, folks will find you and join your tribes. It is your job to provide value and nurture your tribes. In the process, you will get back so much more than you give every time. Who are the people in your tribes?
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