Mastermind groups are nothing new. In fact, Napoleon Hill writes about them in his classic, "Think and Grow Rich", in which he defines "Master Mind" as the "coordination of knowledge and effort, in a spirit of harmony, between two or more people for the attainment of a definite purpose." He further adds, "No two minds ever come together without thereby creating a third, invisible intangible force, which may be likened to a third mind." He believed that a group of like-minded, achievement-oriented people could dramatically leverage each other's success.

I recently joined forces with a business colleague and we have begun our own mastermind group for solo entrepreneurs who want to build their businesses online. We're a diverse group -- we have a business coach (me), a website designer, a college entertainment provider (wax hands, 3-D photo collages, build-a-bear, party inflatables), a wrought-iron fence installer, and a voiceover/website narration specialist.

As we're starting to determine who we are and what we do and how we operate, here are the steps we're using to figure out our direction in the establishment of this group:

1. Ensure all participants have similar interests. In our case, we've only invited others who are self-employed and either currently have their business online or want to create a viable online business. I like the diversity of industries in our group, and think the fact that we don't know a great deal about each other's industries will enable us to bring great new perspectives to the table, as we'll force each other to "think outside the box", since we won't be constrained by preconceived notions of what will or won't work in each industry. You may want to have all members from the same industry but who serve different segments of the same industry, like insurance agents, or bring people together who have some other common interests, like a hobby.

2. Screen your applicants. My colleague and I simply brainstormed about people that we knew who all happen to share similar values: -- the desire and passion to create extraordinary businesses -- love to help others create success and are supportive -- have integrity and are trustworthy -- respond well to feedback -- seek win-win agreements and solutions -- commitment to attending the meetings -- want to get to know each other on a personal, as well as professional, level If you open membership to the general public to increase your numbers, you will want to determine some key core characteristics that you're seeking in new members and ask the appropriate questions to ascertain if the applicants possess these characteristics.

3. Limit your number of participants. I think the ideal group size is 4-6. We currently have 5 members, and may decide to include a sixth at some point. A smaller number of members will ensure that all get to be heard in the group and that all get to participate.

4. Establish guidelines for how the group operates. You'll need to determine the date, time, length, and location for the meeting. You may have someone to volunteer to host the meeting each month, rotate hosts, or meet in a restaurant or coffee shop. Your group will also want to discuss some "rules of the road", like issues of confidentiality, respect, how or if you share info about colleagues or other businesses, etc. Keep the rules short, simple, and clear to maximize the effectiveness of your group.

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