Andrew Carnegie Mastermind Secrets

In 1901, Andrew Carnegie sold his business in what was, at that time, the largest corporate takeover ever. Carnegie received almost $230,000,000 worth of bonds in the sale, and had a special vault built to house them in New Jersey.

John Dealey wrote a new article that caught my attention recently called Life Lessons from a Billionaire. It profiles Andrew Carnegie and his secrets to success. Among the strategies discussed is that of Masterminding:

Carnegie believed that being a member of a MasterMind group was essential for success. A man named Charles M. Schwab worked for him and Carnegie claimed he was one of the smartest men he had ever known. They frequently brainstormed together to become even more successful. Each credited much of their success to the power of the MasterMind sessions they developed in the steel industry.

If it worked for one of the wealthiest people to ever live, it can work for you. Winning is not an individual sport, it is a team sport and the sooner you get the right people on your team, the sooner you will achieve the success you want and deserve.

Master Minding - Something for Everyone!

Guest Contributor: Debbie Lousberg
Debbie's Posts - Debbie's Blog

I recently joined another Master Mind group, this one more structured and professionally facilitated by a wonderful small business expert here in my area of Southern California. It is so different from my other 2 groups, yet similar in all the important ways, that I could not pass up the chance to participate. It is specifically geared toward small business owners who need a support system of like minds to help brainstorm any kind of business issues.

Here how it works: We meet once a week at an appointed time and location and go around the table sharing what accomplishments or big events have taken place over the last week. Then we break into small groups of 3 or 4 and have 10 minutes each to bring up a specific challenge we need help with and have others brainstorm solutions and ideas. At the end of the 10 minutes, we have to commit to an Action Step that we will take by next meeting. Better yet, we have to write that down on paper and turn it in to the facilitator! Powerful stuff. So not only are we like minds exchanging ideas and learning from each other, we're holding one another accountable for making progress in our businesses.

Back in 1937, Napoleon Hill was well aware of this power of Master Mind groups. In his book, Think and Grow Rich, he talked about the richest industrialists of the day who knew about the power of this type of group. Andrew Carnegie, Henry Ford, Thomas Edison, and Harvey Firestone were all Master Minders. What power they harnessed with each other and what success they achieved!

Today, we have this very same tool available. One of my groups is comprised of entrepreneurs like me in the Career Coaching business, all of us in different parts of the US and Puerto Rico - we talk specifically about our practices and client matters. The other is a group of 3 women locally, who have different career paths, yet similar spiritual philosophies and ways to support each other in whatever life issues we need help with. Now my third group provides even more emphasis on goal setting for my overall business success.

It's simply a matter of finding people who have similar goals as you, are willing to meet regularly to support each other, and build trust through confidentiality. Then creating goals and action steps (preferably writing them down) holding each other to the task of completing them, and then proceeding along the path toward progress. The sky's the limit on what you can achieve personally and in business when you put your head together with others!