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New information is invigorating. Especially if you’re curious. You ARE curious, aren’t you? Curious enough to figure out what you may not know? Or to figure out something a bit better that you thought you may have already figured out?
The other day I was discussing books with a friend. We were challenging each other to remember a book that really made a lasting impact. During the conversation, we both concluded that we benefited from many books with snippets of new information here and there. It’s the value of reading – the quest to learn something you may not have known before.
Reading is great for those of us who love to do it. Podcasts are pretty terrific, too. 😉 But these are quite passive. We consume them. It’s the author or the podcaster communicating to us. Highly valuable, but still very lacking.
A New Relationship With Somebody Who Has Different Experiences, Skills, And Viewpoints
Some years ago I formed a relationship with somebody new. I was attending a small conference. I didn’t know anybody else attending. But I met someone. Someone who felt like a kindred spirit, but somebody very different from me.
That was close to ten years ago.
Since that time we’ve pushed each other, challenged each other, supported each other and shared common beliefs as well as differing ones. The meeting was organic – kinda sorta – but we both leaned into it and made it intentional. We’ve been purposeful in leveraging the power we can each have on one another. It’s a one-on-one peer advantage. Just like reading, it’s highly valuable and more so because it has dynamic interaction. But it’s still very lacking.
Self-improvement is at the heart of growing great.
It’s about YOUR self-improvement, but not just yours. It’s about mine, too. And that guy over there. And that woman over there. Yes, and her, too. And him.
When you intentionally leverage the power of others you’re both giving and receiving. When you give more, you get more. Way more. And I’m not just talking about some intrinsic feeling knowing you did well. I’m talking about a real, substantial life-changing benefit.
It’s The High Energy Of Community – The RIGHT Community
Do me a favor. Think of a time when you were in a conversation where your energy was elevated. I mean a time when your energy soared and you felt the impact of instantly. If your life had an energy meter it would have hit a much higher number than normal because this conversation was different. Special.
Research has shown the positive power of community. Support groups prove the point. Alcoholics Anonymous. Weight Watcher. There are plenty of examples. But don’t restrict your thinking of community to traditional support groups. It’s much broader – and often deeper than that.
The true peer advantage is about more than taking advantage. It’s also about giving an advantage to others.
There are a few things I hear more often than anything else. Among them are business owners concerned about what they don’t know. They’re worried about the things they can’t see. Or the things they can’t see clearly enough.
Blind spots. I hear leaders fretful about theirs. And trying to figure out how to eliminate them or at least reduce them.
It’s tough to be truthful with yourself. And that may be among our biggest blind spot of all. How we see ourselves.
Where do we go to improve that?
To whom do we turn for assistance with that?
It’s The Power Of A Room. The Right Room.
“The smartest man in the room” syndrome is real. You know people like that. The opposite isn’t the dumbest-man-in-the-room, but the man (or woman) who realizes the power isn’t completely within themselves but in the room itself. It’s the power of the collective. The group of people in the room.
Let’s get back to that energy. You remember. The time when you felt energized because you were in conversation with people who lifted you up (however you care to define that). Fact is, the more we surround ourselves by other people trying to achieve what we’re trying to achieve (people all trying to train for a marathon, for example) or by other people all determined to grow and improve…the greater our probability of success. We can all do more. Together. We just have to get in the right room. The room where the power is.
What do you look for?
A few things. Trust. Information. Learning. Insight. Experiences.
Peer pressure is often thought of negatively, but it also works in the most positive directions. People helping people. People helping themselves in the presence of other people also helping themselves.
When we’re in a community focused on learning and understanding growth happens. It happens because it provides the energy necessary to grow. It’s why people achieve more and find richer success together. It’s why so many solo efforts fail. Nobody else is in the room to help us to our feet when we fall. Nobody is available to give us a leg up when we need it most.
It’s support and help coupled with intensely deep learning together – and from one another. It makes the room the most powerful room we can be in. If we’ll just go inside open to all the value we can provide for others and for the value others can provide to us.
The Peer Advantage by Bula Network is my effort to do just that for small business owners who are close to the work. Operators.
I’m now accepting applications for enrollment at ThePeerAdvantage.com. This is a paid for peer group of just 7 U.S. based entrepreneurs intent on putting themselves in a room where they can grow their businesses, their leadership, and their lives.
We’ll meet twice a month, every other week, online using a video conferencing platform. That means it’ll be super convenient and easy, reducing wasted time. Your time is highly valuable and so is mine. There are tons of positive reasons why this is your very best opportunity for growth. Go visit that website for all the details. I hope you’ll go there right now and complete the application. Only those who dare to intentionally leverage the power of others will do it. I hope you’re a person like that.
Be well. Do good. Grow great!
RC