Knowing When It's Time to Move On

Guest Contributor: Lorraine Cohen
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In recent posts, I mentioned I have been in a small Mastermind group for about four years. We're all good friends and come together once a month for about 4 hours. I admit our structure is a bit loose in some strategic ways and, over the years, we have made changes to include stronger accountability and motivation. Overall, I have still found the group to lack a degree of consistency and focus in fulfilling our monthly intentions. We all realize how we contribute to a degree of laxness and avoidance that exists in the group.

So, I have found myself evaluating the effectiveness of this group several times over the last 18 months to gain clarity. I began to think about leaving. After all, it has been 4 years!

1. What was working in the group? What wasn't?

2. What was really bugging me about the group?

3. Had I communicated my concerns to the group so that possible changes could be made?

4. Was I looking forward to the group meetings? If not, why not?

5. Were we still a good fit as a mastermind team?

6. Were my needs getting met in the group?

7. Was I showing up for others in a way that held them to their best?

8. What was my contribution to the lack of effectiveness?

9. In thinking about leaving, what were my true motivations? Avoidance of accountability? Fear of success or failure? It just wasn't working for me anymore?

10. Was it time to move on?

My final decision was to leave the group and form a new one. I realized that if I stayed it would be out of loyalty to my friends and at the expense of my commitment to my personal and business success. Additionally, how would I be serving my friends by staying for the wrong reasons in my desire to support their own success?

So often we hold onto things because we fear change and it's comfortable to stay with the status quo. What might be the cost be to hold on when letting go opens more doors of opportunities and possibilities?

I suspect with my departure my friends will invite some new folks to join. I see this decision as a good stretch for us all to experience fresh viewpoints and make some new connections