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Guest post by: Melanie Benson Strick Become an Author

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After years and years of building my business I know it’s a heck of a lot more fun (and a lot less work) to raise a vision when you have a village of people supporting you! I’ve always had a team. To me that’s a no-brainer. But sometimes I lose sight of the other important “villagers” I need to help me stay connected to my vision.

Here are some of the “villagers” that I turn to for support:

1. A Mentor Coach: Having someone in your corner who will help you see all the possibilities is essential to achieving your vision this year.

2. A “Get Things Done” Team: If you look at how any high performing village operates, no one tries to achieve their dream alone. Even the villagers on Botaira in Fiji all had a role in taking care of the retreat center. Its time to hire some help!

3. A Mastermind: Isolation runs rampant in entrepreneurs who work from home so being part of a thriving mastermind can help re-energize your vision, provide encouragement and challenge your assumptions of what’s possible. The more you participate in our monthly calls the more engaged you will feel!

4. Strategic Partners: Having a strong group of partners who support your vision and will host calls or promote your programs to their own community can make this journey much easier. Remember, it goes both ways! Be a giver first and watch your “giving back” energy soar.

5. Your Clients: The village wouldn’t be complete without feeling connected to the people you serve. Make sure your clients are in alignment with your vision — their needs, their values and their ability to pay what you are worth.

Case in point: Recently I joined a new mastermind. There was a pretty arduous interview process that took place to become a member — which told me this group was dead serious about the commitment to participate. It was a lot of work to get in, get it started and figure out all the important elements of being successful in the group.

The pay off came quickly. Within one conversation with one of the key members I had re-ignited a vision inside of me that had laid dormant for years. I had shockingly been playing small in my mind even though I thought I was doing the right thing! A blind spot in my business was illuminated that changed everything!

I realized something extraordinarily important immediately:

Its really easy to play small when you live inside the possibilities you create for yourself! As entrepreneurs we often work alone, chained to our desk, seeing only the emails and Facebook posts that cross our desk for weeks at a time. Conversations are geared towards client deliverables and tasks that have to be done in record time. We become myopic and lose sight of our dream, our calling and what matters most.

No wonder we start thinking small!

Your vision can be ignited by people and situations when you infuse different thinking, especially when you explore ideas from people who are not in your industry or trade.

Its time to raise your vision and thrive this year in ways you never even knew were possible. Take stock in your village — do you have the right people in it?

If not, what corrective action can you take to resolve it? Join a mastermind? Hire a coach? Evaluate the types of clients you are accepting? Spend more time with people who “get it?”

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