Personal Success Strategies - Accountability Circles, Peer-Leaders and Your Personal Posse

Have you ever noticed that successful people have a "team" that they surround themselves with? For example, the president has his cabinet, as well as numerous other advisors and consultants. The head coach of any sports team has countless assistants and trainers. Every CEO has a board of directors.

And what about you?

Who is on your cabinet?

Who are your assistant coaches?

And who is on your board of directors?

Do you have anybody? Read on...

One big reason people have difficulty accomplishing their goals is due to trying to do all the work in isolation and on their own.

In other words, you try to do something in a vacuum, all by yourself and without outside assistance. I have said before and I will say it again:

You do not get any extra points for doing life all by yourself!

In fact, you are far less likely to accomplish what you really want to by trying to do it all by yourself. It is time for you to give up the fear or ego or pride or whatever it is that has stopped you from reaching out to others. It is time to rely on the power of the group.

There is an old scripture that says, "Whenever two or more are gathered, there I will be." This refers to the spiritual intervention of the Divine when there is a group (a "group" constitutes anything more than one person). What this means is that there is synergy in a group, meaning that one plus one equals ten. It is exponential power. The sum of the members is greater that the whole. There is automatically more power for you to access when rely on the power of the group.

There are three distinct power groups for you to seriously consider in growing your life into more power and passion. One of these groups is the accountability circle. The purpose of this group is to hold you accountable to your commitments. Ever notice how you get more done when you have committed to someone else? That is the power of accountability.

Furthermore, the people in this accountability circle can be used to check in with, as well as also being used to problem solve any obstacles that may come between you and your desired goals. They are also the people that will just flat out get in your face and kick you in the butt when and if your stubbornness happens to rise to the surface. I believe there are times when we all may need a good kick in the butt.

Another of the power groups that carries a tremendous amount of power is that of your peer-leaders. These are individuals whose main function is to celebrate your accomplishments. With these individuals, you have already agreed that their primary function is to celebrate your wins. You are no different that the rest of us in that you need positive reinforcement for your efforts and accomplishments. Your peer-leaders are the people in your network to rely on for these needs. Every time you have put forth effort in accomplishing any of your tasks, it is your responsibility to contact these individuals and celebrate your efforts.

The third group is the group that I like to refer to as your personal posse. Some people also refer to this as their "inner circle." These are the people that know you inside out, upside down, backwards and forwards. They know your strengths, weaknesses, dreams, failures, accomplishments and desires. Your personal posse, in fact, may at times know you better than you know yourself. The primary purpose of your personal posse is to give you a place of unconditional safety and to provide a sacred space for you to come into. The personal posse looks out for you and protects you.

In addition, your personal posse also may do some scouting for you. Since these individuals know you better than anyone else, they know exactly what you are wanting in your life. Furthermore, they also know your absolutes and bottom lines, your deal makers and deal breakers, and your wants and desires. They can help find you the “missing pieces” that you are searching for.

There are also other networks and communities that can be highly beneficial for you. Mastermind groups and brainstorming sessions can be of great use when you want a problem solved and/or a breakthrough to a new level in your life or business. These are very focused-oriented gatherings and are not designed to be as personal as your other networks.

All of these networks and communities take time to develop. I often hear people complaining about not being able to find such people. Like anything else in life, if you make a 100% commitment to creating these networks and communities, you will surely find the people and develop the corresponding groups. Start groups yourself if you cannot find groups already established and you can filter the people who participate and determine what networks they would be the most appropriate to participate in. Also, be prepared to give back in an equal proportion.

The goal here is to create a system of people who will support, challenge, encourage, confront and love you into your greatest self. They will help you to stay 100 percent committed to you. They will help you stay married to yourself, and in doing so, live the life of passion, purpose and power.