Often running your own business can feel pretty lonely.

If you’re like me, you probably spend many nights up late just you and your laptop vaguely resentful you’re not out with your pals.

Or deeply resentful you’re not actually asleep right then as you’re so. goddamn. tired. 

Thing is, you’re not alone.

There’s a lot of people supporting you. In my case it’s all these fabulous people (and many, many more):

My college pal knew I had a big launch coming up and sent me vitamins to keep me strong. Researched them so they matched my veggie diet and my allergies and didn’t say a word about how much they cost. It was only when I came to replace them I realised she’d sent me a couple of hundred dollars worth of healthy living. That’s a thing of beauty right there.

Or my sister who’s not only allowed me to stay in her apartment many times, but actually given me pep talks. That might not sound like much – but we were raised by the English, a pep talk usually consists of a firm squeeze of the shoulder and a terse ‘you’re doing quite well at the moment, don’t f%ck it up’. But my sis gave me an actual full on shouty ‘you can do it’ speech that reduced me to tears.

My pals in Colorado who’ve let me ‘dog sit’ many times over the years – not only allowing me a dose of borrowed furry-pet love – but also when things were tough, helped me skip paying rent for months at a time: always just happened to be when I was most in need. I see that and I thank them kindly.

Or many years back, a pal in New York insisted on buying me groceries because he knew I was waiting for a client invoice to come in and till then I’d be eating ramen noodles (if I was lucky). He insisted it was to say ‘thank you for letting him stay’, but we both knew it was to keep me full of energy till the check cleared.

Then there’s the friends who’ve leant me their ears, their training and their support over the years. The many, many Masterminds I’ve been in and the amazing support and advice I’ve been given that’s changed my business out of all recognition.

My pals in other industries – buddies from my branding, commercials and film days who have cheered me on and in the early years, even paid a little extra on the bill as I was struggling to make it big.

We’re not alone, not at all – and we’re all better as a team. Sure friends might make jokes about us being entrepreneurs – about how long it takes and how maybe you should get a ‘real’ job – but really, most people are rooting for us most of the time.

Plus if you have one, being in a Mastermind group means those supporters are with you ALL the time. The good days and the bad days all need a group of people to be there for you. With a Mastermind group, we not only give you business strategy, but support for those less than fabulous days.

It takes a village – or at the very least a Mastermind – to make a great entrepreneur

Make sure you make the most of next year. Get in a Mastermind group – or run your own for your clients, so they have this experience too. Even on the flat out rubbish days, we can be there for each other.

We aren’t doing this alone. We’re better together. 

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Has this spurred you on to get cracking and do some goal setting? These posts are exactly what you’ll need:

Call that what you like, it’s just a Martini to me
Big goals mean big results
Discover your life goals easily in 30 minutes or less

Or check out the whole blog here