Summer Story Series – {My Mastermind}

Summary

Podcast Summary: Simple Pin Podcast – "Summer Story Series: My Mastermind"

Episode Information

• Title: Summer Story Series – {My Mastermind}
• Host: Kate Ahl
• Release Date: July 9, 2025

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1. Introduction to the Summer Story Series

In this special episode, Kate Ahl launches the Summer Story Series, a beloved segment of the Simple Pin Podcast that shares inspiring stories to offer listeners a break from traditional Pinterest marketing content. Kate explains the genesis of the series, highlighting its purpose to inspire and provoke new ideas through engaging storytelling.

"The spirit behind these few summer episodes is to give you a bit of a break in talking about Pinterest marketing, to listen to a story that will inspire you or maybe give you some food for thought."
— Kate Ahl [00:01]

2. Origins of the Mastermind Group

The mastermind group was initiated in 2017 following a conference where Kate connected with like-minded women. Fueled by conversations over wine, the idea was born to create a smaller, more intimate group focused on business, life, and faith.

"We began this conversation with what if we could recreate this on a smaller scale where we are having these conversations about business and life and faith."
— Kate Ahl [01:30]

3. Evolution of the Group

Originally consisting of seven members, the group met in Cancun with the intention of fostering deep connections beyond typical Zoom sessions. Over time, the group streamlined to four members—Kate, Natalie Gingrich, Kelly Snyder, and Erin Chase—emphasizing flexibility and adaptability as members' lives and businesses evolved.

"We are all gathering in Cancun. And that was a really important component to it, was that we didn't want it to just be on Zoom."
— Kelly Snyder [11:43]

4. Embracing Diversity: Business Models and Personalities

A key strength of the mastermind lies in its diversity. The members bring varied business models and personal perspectives, enriching the group's dynamic. They include both B2B and B2C businesses, allowing for a broad range of insights and strategies.

"We have differences as well. We have got faith differences, we've got political differences, we've got business differences."
— Natalie Gingrich [14:55]

5. Superpowers: Leveraging Individual Strengths

Each member contributes unique strengths, or "superpowers," to the group. Kate excels in team-building and connecting people, Kelly is a strategic marketer with exceptional memory and relationship-building skills, Natalie is an operational maestro with excellent communication skills, and Erin brings a balance of creativity and strategic thinking.

"You are one of the best connectors I know of people. You do an amazing job of knowing people and then knowing how to connect them to other people for them to continue on their journey."
— Kelly Snyder [19:27]

6. Memorable Moments: Trips and Experiences

The mastermind group has shared numerous memorable trips, each fostering both business growth and personal bonding. Highlights include:

• Marco Island: Solidified the group's cohesion with deep conversations and fun poolside moments.

  "We spent almost. I think it was five days together. It was one of our longer trips. We had a lot of deep conversations about family and about money and our businesses."
  — Kelly Snyder [38:03]

• Whale Watching in Cabo: An unforgettable experience that symbolized the group's adventurous spirit.

  "I saw the question, what was your favorite memory? And those were the two that popped up. Or seeing the whales, I'm telling you."
  — Natalie Gingrich [51:03]

• Fun Incidents: Kelly’s legendary moment of banging on a window in frustration, showcasing the group's camaraderie and ability to handle conflicts humorously.

  "She is our mama bear, though. Like, she. She is our mama bear. She loves us so fiercely, and she was straight pissed that this person would be rude to me."
  — Natalie Gingrich [50:36]

7. Structuring Mastermind Meetings

The group employs a flexible yet structured approach to their meetings, typically held twice a year in various luxurious locations. Each session focuses on one member at a time, allowing for personalized attention and tailored advice. They maintain a balance between business discussions and leisure activities, ensuring both professional growth and personal relaxation.

"We each get an individual session... It generally starts with sort of like State of the Union, where are things right now, what's working, what's not working."
— Erin Chase [35:02]

8. Advice for Starting or Joining a Mastermind

The members share valuable insights for those looking to establish or join a mastermind group:

• Be Willing to Give and Receive: Embrace vulnerability and open communication.

  "You have to be willing to give and receive. You have to be willing to be open, you have to be vulnerable, you have to not judge."
  — Erin Chase [57:44]

• Embrace Diversity: Seek out members with different strengths and perspectives to enrich the group's dynamic.

  "We are more different than we are alike, but for the right reasons, it works."
  — Natalie Gingrich [18:19]

• Foster Deep Connections: Prioritize building genuine relationships over transactional interactions.

  "This is a place, a bubble that we have created that is very whole person."
  — Natalie Gingrich [64:52]

• Manage Conflicts Gracefully: Develop the ability to apologize and forgive to maintain group harmony.

  "There will be conflict. The ability to say I'm sorry and I screwed up and can you forgive me?"
  — Kelly Snyder [59:53]

• Take Risks and Be Open: Step out of your comfort zone to foster meaningful connections and growth.

  "Be open to take a risk because it is a risk... being willing to risk vulnerability."
  — Kate Ahl [68:24]

9. Conclusion: Building a Supportive Community

Kate wraps up the episode by encouraging listeners to take the plunge into forming or joining a mastermind group. She emphasizes the importance of prioritizing such relationships despite the challenges, underscoring how these connections can sustain entrepreneurs through high and low tides.

"Take prioritization off it on it because they risked at first... This is time out of our family lives. This is time out of our business lives."
— Kate Ahl [68:24]

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Key Takeaways:

• Founding a Mastermind: Originates from shared experiences and the desire for deeper connections beyond professional interactions.
• Group Dynamics: Diversity in business models and personalities enhances the group's strength and versatility.
• Superpowers: Leveraging individual strengths leads to collective growth and problem-solving.
• Memorable Experiences: Shared trips and experiences foster strong personal and professional bonds.
• Advice for Others: Emphasizes vulnerability, diversity, deep connections, conflict management, and taking risks.

Notable Quotes:

• "Sometimes when we listen to stories, we hear pieces and parts that ignite certain parts of our brain to either do new things or try new things." — Kate Ahl [00:01]
• "I look at this group as my board of directors..." — Natalie Gingrich [25:43]
• "We have all come to the table with that and that's why I think we are as strong and as deep as we are." — Kelly Snyder [61:12]

This episode offers a heartfelt glimpse into the power of mastermind groups in fostering both personal and business growth. Through shared stories and experiences, Kate and her mastermind members illustrate the profound impact of supportive, diverse, and committed peer relationships.

Transcript

[Kate]

Welcome back to another episode of the Simple Pen podcast. Today kicks off one of my favorite series that we have ever done here on the podcast, and that is the Summer Story series. A few years ago, I did this series. Then we took a year break, mostly because I became sick with a thyroid disorder that had come out of remission after 12 years. It literally took a month for the doctors to finally surface what was happening. But in that absence and not being able to record the Summer Story series, people emailed me saying they missed it. They were really looking forward to listening to them over the summer. So the spirit behind these few summer episodes is to give you a bit of a break in talking about Pinterest marketing, to listen to a story that will inspire you or maybe give you some food for thought. I envision you on a road trip, a daily walk, laying on the beach or somewhere in the mountains, somewhere where you can relax and just take in a story. And this is why, because sometimes when we listen to stories, we hear pieces and parts that ignite certain parts of our brain to either do new things or try new things. And I just think that is so important in this day and age when we are bombarded with information. So I have something really special for you to kick off this Summer Story series. And that is the story of my mastermind. This group of ladies has supported me through thick and thin, sadness and joy, and deep pressure in business. They are sounding boards, reality checkers, the challengers and friends. It's not always perfect, but I believe that's part of the amazing story. That perfection isn't the goal, but being human and vulnerable is that we get to do this messy entrepreneurial life together and keep ourselves moving forward one day at a time. There are four of us. I'll be facilitating this discussion about how we got started, how we structure our time together, some really funny stories, as well as what we've learned along the way. So to find out more about what these ladies do, I'm gonna leave links below in the description. Make sure you check them out and follow along with that. Here's Natalie Gingrich, Kelly Snyder and Erin Chase. Aaron, Kelly and Natalie, welcome to the Simple Pin podcast.

[Natalie]

Hey. Hey.

[Kate]

Hello. I'm so excited to record this and I've introduced you all in the intro. So everybody has a little bit of background. So I want to jump into how we got started with our mastermind here. And I'm going to start with my first part of the story and how that kind of kicks off, and then we'll kind of have Each one of us tell where we came off onto the scene. But in 2017, there was a conference that we had all went to and in the evening there was a girl that I connected with there and there was lots of wine flowing. And we began this conversation with what if we could recreate this on a smaller scale where we are having these conversations about business and life and faith and it's this long standing group where we could really connect and go deeper in business. And it was like, well, yeah, that's a good idea. Who's going to start it? And the two of us kind of looked at each other like, well, I guess we can. And it became this, like, who do you know? Who do you want to connect with? Who do you want to be involved? What are the things that are important? And this conversation is only literally like 30 minutes maybe. And the idea for a mastermind was born. And I think actually, Natalie, you were the next one. I think that I mentioned this to that I said, hey, do you want to be a part of this? So I guess pick up on that part of the story, Nat, of how. If we remember, because we talked about how this is 2017, like, you know, eight years ago. Nine years. Eight years ago. Yeah. I can't do math. So, Nat, tell me where you pick up on this, where you hear about this mastermind idea.

[Natalie]

I'm like counting the numbers, the years with my fingers because it has been a hot minute. And honestly, I. When I think of eight years and like where we were that night, Kate, the. I mean, y' all have like gone the distance with me the whole time I have been in pretty much the whole time I've had a. An emerging business at least. So, yes. So we were all at this conference and what a pivotal. Like what. Just thinking back, just what a great pivotal moment for me to be able to join in with partnership of you guys in a different way that we might think of partnership from a business perspective. But yes, the wine was flowing. I remember the. I remember you guys coming over. To me, it was also a really pivotal. That day specifically was a very pivotal day for me, which we will not need to go into in this podcast. But I felt the sisterhood, this. That was like the biggest gift because it was a very trying day. It was, it was a. From a developmental perspective and growth perspective. It was huge.

[Kate]

It was just.

[Natalie]

It was a destroying day and also a day that was met with a ton of just love and friendship. And when this opportunity, I just got goosebumps. But when this opportunity came up and you, you know, included me in this, this, this mustard seed of what could be. It was like, maybe this is going to truly be a mastermind that serves me in a different way than all of the other ones that I had participated in thus far. And I looked at the people that you guys. I mean, it was, you know, you guys who had approached me. Kelly, is that the first time I had met you?

[Kelly]

No, no, I'll, I'll talk about that origin story, because I didn't meet you until we got on the plane to Cancun, because that was.

[Kate]

It was the next year that Kelly had come to that conference. So it was really just the few of us were there, and I actually went back to Kelly. We were in that personal mastermind, and I was like, hey, because actually to what you just said, Nat, I think at that moment I had that same ache for something that could be deep and personal. And we had had this kind of zoom mastermind. I was like, there's something missing here. Like, it's not going to, to that next level. So it was kind of like when that piece happened, then I went back to Kelly. I was like, hey, what do you think about. I don't even know how it started. So actually I'll jump to. Unless, Nat, you have more to share on that.

[Natalie]

I'm just. If someone's watching this on YouTube, they're probably like, why is she smirking? I instantly went to Cancun. To the flight to Cancun?

[Kate]

Yes. Oh, my gosh.

[Natalie]

I think, I think just to summarize where I was and to. To move the story forward, I was in a place of wanting to be connected to people that were, you know, like minded and then also different, which I know we'll also dive into as well. But it really came at just such an opportunity at a great time for me in my journey. And I felt like I was playing with the big girls, playing with people who had been in the business who had really understood a lot more and had more history than I, and in this specific space. And so it was just such a big gift and a big honor to be asked to be a part of it.

[Kate]

Yeah, it was definitely the beginning of something amazing. I can't wait to get to that Cancun flight, Kelly. So I. I come to you and actually, I don't even know if I don't actually remember the conversation. So you tell me your perspective of how this door kind of cracked open.

[Kelly]

Well, I think I just butted myself in, if we're going to be honest. So like, you guys are looking at me funny, but, like, because I have known UK for eternity like that. I mean. I mean, over a decade and probably.

[Kate]

Closer to 2011 at Aaron's conference digi.

[Kelly]

Yeah. And I've known Aaron for that amount of time, too. And Aaron and I have traveled a lot together. So, you know, we knew each other really well. And I had heard. I think you had mentioned something about this or Aaron had. I don't remember. But then I was like, well, I won't be part of it too. And so because Aaron had been invited by an. Another member at the. Another person at the time into the group, and I just remember I kind of butted my little butt in there, and I was like, well, I won't be part of this, because for the same reason, we had been part of a personal mastermind together.

[Natalie]

We had.

[Kelly]

I've been in other masterminds too, over the years, and I was just looking for something deeper and different, and I was kind of letting myself be open to that. So.

[Kate]

Yeah.

[Kelly]

And so I didn't meet Nat until the plane ride because Nat and Aaron are both from the same area in San Antonio, and they were flying and we were meeting up Houston. And so, like, I met them at the gate and met Nat for the first time and Aaron for the first time. And then we took advantage of the free beverages on Southwest. And then I. I knew instantly, like, this was gonna work because I'm also introverted, which you three are extroverted. And so it is kind of scary to meet new people, you know, and to put yourself out there. But, like, I knew by the end of that flight that I was going to be fine, so.

[Kate]

Yeah. Oh, so good. So, Aaron, tell us how you kind of, you know, got your way in, because it was you and I knew each other and. But I actually didn't know what was kind of working behind the scenes until I think Kelly might have told me, like, hey, Aaron's going to join. I was like, oh, no way. So tell me a little bit about that.

[Erin]

Do I remember this? I think I. It was kind of a joint. Like, I knew Kelly. I knew you. I had been in a small four person in Mastermind with somebody previously that ended because one of those members was no longer going to be working in online business, kind of going back to sort of mom life and in that season of her life. And so our. That one just sort of ended. So I was. I was at, like, a. Hey, I would love for this type of thing to continue. It's such a blessing to me. And when this came about, it was just like, okay, that's the natural extension, because I knew both of you. Natalie's literally up the road, but I didn't know her yet. Um, and so it just sort of. I don't know. I. I say I fell into it, and. But it also goes to, you know, who do you know, who is, like, doing something similar to you and. But not, well, competitive. Anyways. I know we'll get into that. So I think it just seemed like the natural fit because we. This is a very difficult, like, life to understand. Being a woman, business owner, it's all on you, you know, building a team. I mean, there's so much to all of this. And so to have the camaraderie, the empathy, the support, the stress bouncing. I mean, there's so much, um. And so that it was just a real gift to me. So I think I sort of fell into it. I don't know that I bullied my.

[Natalie]

Way in like Kelly thinks she did.

[Erin]

Even though she did it. But I think I kind of fell into it just through knowing you guys through the event circuit and the grapevine and whatnot.

[Kate]

Well, and one of the things that I didn't say in the beginning, which I think is important to note, is that we did start with seven original members. And in November was when we had this first conversation. And in March, was it April? When was our first? Or May?

[Kelly]

February. End of February.

[Erin]

Okay.

[Kelly]

We're spring break.

[Kate]

Yes. I do remember the spring breakers in the transfer van from the airport. That was real intense. So we met with seven. And I think what's important to note is that we are all gathering in Cancun. And that was a really important component to it, was that we didn't want it to just be on Zoom. We wanted it to be this intensive where we came together. We were able to talk about those three elements of business, life and faith, and we were able to kind of bump along and figure out what it was going to be. So this first one was really an experiment in is this going to work? Like, are. Are we actually going to connect and gel? And that first one was great. And then we had two members fall off, and then we had five, and then a couple years later, we had another member fall off. So I think what's important for people listening to note is that if you're trying to start a peer mastermind, you need to be flexible. You need to be willing to ebb and flow, flow with the differences of people. And it could be their schedules. It could be their personality, it could be their stage of life. But it is going to take a long time for you to curate a culture within the group that you have that allows for those things to happen. So that I think that's just really important. It was seven of us. We all met in Cancun. We purposely chose an all inclusive because we did not want to have to think about meals. We didn't want to think about having to spend extra money on different things. We wanted to just arrive at a destiny nation. And Mexico really offers that because there's no all inclusives in the US and this was. We didn't want to do an Airbnb. We have since done those. But this was just a really good opportunity for us to, to meet there and be all together. So that's kind of the jump off point from here and kind of how the group has evolved. So before I get into kind of the differences, I want to say this is that we have met multiple places over the years. We have done some years, we've done two meetings a year. Sometimes we've one meeting year. We actually were in Mexico as the world was shutting down for Covid and we were barely got back, which is great. We were in Cabo. So we have done Cabo multiple times. We have done Cancun, we've done Palm Springs, we have done Texas. So we, we've chosen a, a lot of different locations. But also one of the things to know is that we're all mothers. We're all mothers of kids who are around the same age. In fact, three of us just graduated kids from college and from high school. So that's a lot to accommodate. Baseball schedules, sports schedules, you have to have a group that is okay with that. And I think this group that we have here, of the four, we landed really well in these things. But I want to address our differences. And so I want to jump in first with that to Natalie. I want to kind of toss that to you. We don't have the same business models and that's actually really cool. But I guess talk a little bit about those differences that you've seen kind of emerge as we've kind of created our culture.

[Natalie]

Yeah, I think it's one of the biggest, the greatest things of. I think it's one of the greatest things of this container that we have created for ourself. And it's, it's one that has allowed me to really feel like I could contribute and I could receive. And so part I mentioned earlier, and I think all of us and and even those of you guys who are listening have probably been in other peer groups or other groups, paid or peer. And it was important for me at that moment, at the moment that we all came together and still continues to be very important to me that I was in a peer group. And you know, the pay groups had served me well in the past. But the thing about us curating this together and really to, to, to find that synergy, I knew that I needed, number one, a peer group, but number two, I needed to be in a place where I could receive. I do a lot. I find myself just the person that I am. I find myself in places where I give, give, give. I'm an operator. And so what that means to me is like I'm always listening. I, I would say I'm a good listener, but I'm always finding gaps and ways to improve what someone is telling me. Whether that's my kids, whether that's my friends, my husband, my business friends, this mastermind, it doesn't matter. Like, that's just the way that my brain works. And so I have found myself so many times in places where I am in a mastermind or in a container or group where all I really do is give, give, give. And I haven't, and this is a flaw in my own self, but where I haven't either felt comfortable or been around the right people to be able to receive and ask. And so the thing I think that has made this group for me be so sticky in a place of comfort and, and, and true authenticity is that I've been able to find people who are like me and who are different from me. Not all, and not even personally or, or personally as well as professionally. And this group differences are far and wide. Even though we have stuck together and we have a lot of, of synergy, there's, I mean, we're more different than we are alike, but for the right reasons, it works. And you know, we've mentioned we've got faith differences, we've got political differences, we've got business differences. The things that are, are similar. We've already talked about. We are all mothers, we are all Christian, we all find faith at the middle of us, we all value family. We are in this digital space that is different for each of us are in consumer looks different. But there's a lot of, of of things that are very similar too, which of course are going to be the threads that hold you together. So if you're listening to this and you're thinking, man, how do I curate something like this for myself, I think the natural thing is to find people who are like you. But the thing that has made this so sticky for me is that there are a lot of differences as well. And these women have really mentored me because they all came into the digital space before me. They knew the landscape, and they've been able to give me perspective and advice. And it's. I've. I just found myself in a place where I could truly be open to whatever it is that they. The experiences that they had and they. And the wisdom that they had. And if I, you know, looked at this like every other group that I've ever joined, I may not have. Have said yes. So the differences have been very, very poignant for me.

[Kate]

Yeah. And a lot of groups, actually, it would hold them back. It would say, I don't want somebody who's so different. I want everybody who is a. You know, there's two B2B businesses and two business to consumer businesses. They would say, I only want B2C. I only want to learn. And I think when people join with that take, take, take mentality, it saps the group dry because you're going into it with this. Like, I just want to get what I want from this group and then get out. But there's so much that we want to contribute to each other. And actually, Kelly, I think one of the things that you brought up that was so great when we were prepping for this and I was asking, like, what are the things you guys want to talk about? You brought up this idea of superpowers. Like, what does each of us possess that contributes to the group, to elevate the group. So I want to talk about that first. Like what, I guess what spurred that thought for you? And in kind of wanting that to be a really important question that was brought to the table.

[Kelly]

Well, we all have different businesses, and because of our businesses, you can say, well, they're really good at X.

[Kate]

Right.

[Kelly]

So, like, you know, Kate, you have an agency and you know, Aaron and I are both business to consumer and that you've got, you know, this, like, amazing do that you do. And so, like, those are your superpowers.

[Kate]

Right.

[Kelly]

We wouldn't have got into business without those. But I think the other thing that I learned as we spent more time together is that each of you have other superpowers as well. And, you know, as Aaron mentioned, this is a crazy business to be. It's lonely. It's, you know, you don't have co workers, really, that you're seeing on a Day to day basis. You know, we've all talked about that. Being an entrepreneur is like the worst session of therapy ever. Like, all of your bad stuff comes flying out. And so it was nice to be able to kind of see how, how else we can help each other. So, like, you know, for you, Kate, you have an agency, so you are so great already at putting together teams and systems and that the way that you, you know, just really have that connection with your team. But in addition to that, like, you are one of the best connectors I know of people. You do an amazing job of knowing people and then knowing how to connect them to other people for them to continue on their journey. And that's not something that is necessary to your agency. It's just part of who you are, you know, And I, I talked, you know, with Aaron. Aaron is my greatest cheerleader. Like, she firmly believes that all of us have the ability to do whatever we want to do. And she will say it on a regular basis, like, we'll just go do it.

[Natalie]

You can do that.

[Kelly]

You totally. You can do that, like, all the time. But the other thing you don't know about Aaron is that she has a steel trap for people and their names and everything else. So, like, we've been to conferences and I don't know anybody because, like, a name goes in my head and then it's completely out. And she's like, well, that's so and so. And I'm like, who? She's like, well, they do. And then she will have like their whole backstory down and like, then she goes up to him and then she's connecting and they're connecting with her. And like, that is just. It's a superpower that I don't have. But I know if I have a question about somebody, that's who I'm going to call because, like, she's going to remember who they are. Nat is amazing at operations. Of course she is.

[Kate]

Right?

[Kelly]

I mean, like, and just like she said, like, I always feel the, you know, fill those gaps. But Nat is the best communicator I've ever. I've ever encountered. We've all had this, like, a really hard situation that we've came to the table with. And she articulates it in a way that is fair and it is kind, but it is to the point, like, she just does it in such a way. And I'm always like, writing, you know, to do that. So I think those are things that help a mastermind. It's just not to your. To Nat's point and to your point, Kate, of just take, take, take. But that you can come and that they can help you out in ways that are very different than even what their business is.

[Kate]

Yeah, absolutely. Erin, bridging off of that, what do you see in each of us that has kind of really helped support your business on that superpower piece? You know, what has been the standout thing about Nat and Kelly and I that's really supported you?

[Erin]

I mean, I think ditto Kelly. Obviously. I think there's things that you've each pushed me to do that I wouldn't necessarily have done to understand, like how I tickled and then how that, like, translates to both day to day and like high level sort of things, you know, even practical things, like, I don't know that I ever would have done a disc profile if Natalie didn't know the brilliance in that. And like how that, like how that is so important for understanding how you operate and then team members operate and then how you click together. Like there's. And that the same for you, Kate, like, just knowing how all of that works. Y' all have always had a bigger team than I have had. And so it's. It's been a joy to see that be managed in a way that, you know, maybe I will one day, maybe I won't. I don't know. And so that's been a real gift to me as well. And I just think that, like, this, this, we, we've all. Each of you has created this space that it makes me think of that the me, the little TikTok thing that goes around. We listen and we don't judge. Like, that's how this group has been from day one. Like, we're just here to listen and then solve problems. I think that actually is a really. Maybe we haven't talked too much about that. Like, we're here to help each other solve problems. These very unique problems. Maybe not, I mean, unique to, you know, online entrepreneurship, maybe not necessarily unique to business. So I feel like having this space, I guess, safe space. I don't want to sound like a snowflake, but. But it really has been that. And just getting. This is more general than each of you specifically, but getting that, like, love back and support back, whether it's a life crisis, because I think we've all had one of those. And, you know, helping navigate through that with grace and patience and also pushing forward. I don't know. I don't know. I'm kind of rambling. But I think each of you has Spoken into my life, my heart, my mind, my business in different ways over the years, really. And I think it comes back to that. Like, this is just a safe, supportive place, and that each of you is a, you know, very important part of that, despite, you know, differences, seasons of life, graduations. I don't even know which direction was up the last month, but here we still are. Right. Um, so I just feel like it's the. The love and support from each of you, and ditto to what. What Kelly said, so.

[Kate]

Yeah, agreed. Nat, what about you? Like, feedback on superpowers, differences collectively.

[Natalie]

It's. I look at this group as my, like, board of directors, if you will. Right. This is a. Like, as Aaron said, it's a safe place. But I see this container as truly my. My board, if you will, my best friends in business. My. You know, this. It's. It's wild, especially from someone from the outside looking in, maybe even someone who's not been in this entrepreneurial world before. But these, you know, the three of you guys are some of my best friends on the planet. And our touch points are not like anyone else's best friends. Right. Because it's a whole different world, and it's very, very hard to articulate or even envision. And I'm so grateful that we took the time and to. To build what we have here. So if you're thinking of or if you're wanting and desiring something like this, I think that's a good. I want to share that with you guys that I really have invested so deeply in these relationships because they are, you know, on a personal side, they're some of my best friends. And then on a business side, I look at them as my board. And why does that matter? Because when I'm incubating new ideas before, I, like, have the courage to tell my spouse or my director of operations or my team, they hear it. They hear it ugly. And these are the people. This is my. I'll say the word again that this is my board. And when I think of that and I look at each of you individually, I think, wow, like, Kelly is the person who I can bring. She. She truly doesn't like. She's got such a great creative mind and very strategic and also balanced with that data piece. And the gift of telling somebody with no filter how she really feel, and it's not personal. It's like she's going to make it to how. How my market. Like, she really inserts herself into a prospective director of operations, even though she's not One. But you think she doesn't follow my stuff on social? You think she doesn't listen intently to me? She absolutely does. And so when I come to her with a big idea, she's like, hey, let's like, let's look at it this way Nat. Or like let's, let's take this a little, you know, three steps further down or let's expand it. And there have been some things that I've put into my business that truly she has cultivated off of my mustard seed. She's taken and made something else. Aaron. I, you know, Aaron's ability to genuinely listen to you. She's a fantastic, I watch her here. She's just a fantastic listener. But her experience in this space and we have a, we have weird overlaps of like, of, of local friends who we each have, you know, parts of their businesses in our brains and stuff. So we've got a lot of, of synergy there. But when I share something with Aaron, she is, she meets me with that operator brain who is very, she, she is very creative and strategic but she's also the one who's going to help me like break it down and actually make it come into its next version. And then you know, Kate and I have the most similarities of our group because we are both, you know, B2B. We both are natural. Our native state is being a service provider. I think that just our, our histories are very similar. We both have a passion for building team based businesses and stuff like that. And so you know, I lean on her because she understands more than, than Kelly or Aaron about what my business is doing or what I'm facing in with these economic changes. And you know, I, all of us have been through the highs of business together and we joke about them. I forgot what we called it.

[Kate]

2020 money.

[Kelly]

Oh, 2020 money.

[Natalie]

Yeah.

[Kelly]

We were gonna buy a yacht.

[Natalie]

Like we were gonna. We. I mean actually those are some good laughs. But anyway, we've gone through 2020 money and we've gone through the, the, the secrets of that we don't want anyone to hear and we don't want to vet with our audiences. And heck, we may not even wanted to share with our spouses, but it's like we've gone through the man, should I. What should I do next? Like should I really bail from this? Like this is really, really a tough season. We, we. We've navigated all of those together and I just got chills again. So. But such, such a fantastic group.

[Kate]

Yeah, I so agree. Yeah. I was thinking 2020 money when we were talking about that. And I, I think to that point of, I, I believe it was In March of 21, we were in Marco Island. It was kind of the first time we could get back together after Covid. Yes, that was, that was, there's so many stories, you guys, but we did, I think, the strengths finder during that. And we've talked about the Enneagram before and Nat and I have taken the Colby, and our Colbys are almost identical. They're like one number off. So when we did that, though, what was really interesting is, Kelly, you are so high on, like, the marketing and the strategy. And I'm not, like, I don't even think about it. Like, I'm in the relationship piece. I'm in this like, positivity space. Not that Kelly isn't positive, but that's like one of the, the things. And it was so great to see those differences. And like, Aaron is such a, she's a quick start, which is opposite on the Colby of Nat and I, who are fact finders, who we are just like, sometimes analysis paralysis. And Aaron's like, get it, just do it, like, go, like, research it, do it. Take, take charge. And those all come together in this really cool place where it's almost like we're ping ponging off each other in a discussion. And when somebody's taking the hot segment seat, whether they're struggling with it. And there's been times when we've done a hot seat or we've done a whole day and we have talked about business, but we also wanted to like, speak into people's lives when they are in these places where it's just really tough or we, we don't know. There have been seasons where some of us have come to the table and said, I don't know if I'm going to have this business in a year. I know that even if I don't have a business, we will have this, this, like, that's not really going anywhere, but this question of, like, can I navigate through the recession? Can I navigate through Covid, Can I navigate through all of these things? And sometimes you just need a group of people who have different perspectives to show up and say, yes, yes, you can. And it's almost like you have four people that are together. Like, picture us all back to back, but we're looking out in different places and we turn around inward and we bring that perspective to the center. And now you, you don't just have these thoughts in a vacuum. And we talk about that a lot too. Like we'll see these messages online and we have a voxer channel where we'll bring them in. And we're like, we know that's crap. We know that selling tactic is garbage. We also know that if you're buying into a twenty five thousand dollar mastermind, or thirty or sixty, I think we even saw it for a hundred one time, if you're buying into that, like that's not really what you need. Like you need your ride or dies. Like you need these people who are going to show up for you. And sometimes in those places where you're paying, they're not always bad. But when you're paying for someone to lead you or you're paying to get closer to that person or whatever, a lot of like what we've created here goes out the window completely. Like the authenticity gets moved out of the way, the rawness. Many of us have, all of us have come to the table broken, people cried, crying. And just. And not because we're in our 40s.

[Kelly]

You know, like, no, just because of what's going on.

[Kate]

Pain. Exactly. And I think that is the beautiful part. And we've talked about this before too, and I want to share this just before we get to how we structure our time together. But we've talked about how we know people ache for something like this and how we know they're spending money to try to find it and they end up coming up empty because they joined and they thought, well, I'm going to get connection and I'm going to get, you know, depth of business. And it's almost like that money spent, there's a barrier, it inhibits something from people growing. Like, I don't want to sound too down on like masterminds, you know, we've all talked about it. Paid mastermind, sorry, we've all talked about it here. But it's just you gotta, then you have to interrogate that. You have to interrogate like, why am I joining something? What do I hope to get from it and am I hoping to contribute to it in the good, the bad, the ugly? Because if you are, then that's the makings for something that's really going to grow. Obviously none of us knew that we showed up in Cancun in spring break 2018. Like, I mean, we just didn't know it. So let's talk about structure of time. Aaron, I want to toss this to you. There's been many different ways that we've structured over the years, but I feel like we've landed pretty well on Like a system of just when we go into it, we kind of fall into this structure. So talk about, about like, where have we gone? How did we choose a time and then like, what do we do once we get there?

[Erin]

Well, I think it in large part depends on how much time we have together. We have been together for a week before. We've been together for three days, two and a half days. I mean, we've really. It's been a little bit different every time. But I think the consistent structure within each of those is that we each get an individual, I don't know, session. I don't know, we don't even have a name for it. But like it's a session and sometimes it's a full day, sometimes it's a stay. It really just depends on the time. And the session is just kind of a long block of time where we're sitting somewhere, somewhere. Not when we're out watching the whales on the boat, not then. That's not the time. But the where we're sitting.

[Natalie]

It can be around at the pool.

[Erin]

It could be around like in the lobby in a big, like loungey space. It's been a different sort of physical space every time, but the structure has been very similar where we're focused on each one of us at a time. And it generally starts with sort of like State of the Union, where are things right now, what's working, what's not working? And then it turns into maybe things we want to do in the future. And then let's address a problem. So it's, it's been slightly structured differently time wise, but I think overall getting in the. Making sure that our needs are met and we get what we need from it. If we were all scattered and it was, oh, let's talk about this, and then that like, you know, yes, we. What is it called? Squirrel, rabbit trail, whatever. We do do that. But like very much it comes right back to, okay, no, this is Kate's day. We're going to finish talking about this new product line they want to do or the Shopify store, whatever it may be.

[Kate]

Right.

[Erin]

And so that's. We just really try to keep it focused on that. And then we just use. Sometimes we use, you know, a breakfast time, sometimes we use. Not usually dinner though. That's more like lifey type stuff. But we really just try to keep it focused on each one of us. That way we get the feedback we need, we get the honest feedback we need, we get the questions answered, we get. I always come away with like this, this is where I need to go with things. Like, I was thinking this way, but also maybe thinking that. And maybe we're. Are we going to do this? And then it's like, okay, I have a clearer path of what needs to happen based on where we are. What's, you know, the rub, I guess. And then, you know, it just gives me that clarity of what. Where we need to go. So, yeah, I think that's a general rough look at our time together.

[Kate]

So tell me what your most memorable or favorite or whatever. Like, most impactful. You use whatever term you want to use. Like, when you think of one of our trips, like, what has been one that you've walked away from either business building or you were recharged or you were refilled. Like, what's been your favorite trip so far?

[Erin]

I mean, we've had so many fun little memory moments, right? Like, look, the dolphins. Hanging out with the dolphins and shelling and Marco island and then whale watching. And I mean, we've had so many of those. Like, I. I almost feel like that's as much of a highlight as, like, you know, the. All the business stuff. I think the most impactful for me was, was that we started the how are we going to get our businesses through the recession conversation before anybody else did. I remember it, it was 2021, right? March 2021. We were at LeBlanc and I was like, do we really need to be doing this? Everything's fine.

[Kate]

That it.

[Erin]

Here we are four years later, and we're all still here. And I've seen, you know, you all know this, but you see heartbreaking story after heartbreaking story of friends and colleagues who have poured their lives into this and then just. Yeah, so we're still. We're still hyper focused on that conversation and, and making hard decisions. We all have and might have to continue, Right? We don't know. But I think that that early conversation, I just was. I don't know if I was living in a cloud or what, but I was like, no, no, we're fine. Everything's fine. Like, so anyways, that was impactful for me because that helped me make decisions early on about, you know, both on the consumer side as well as on our internal side. And then I just think that, you know, clarity on new products, new programs, finessing programs, the trying new strategies, things that have worked and haven't worked, you know, all of these little nuggets that come up over the years or have come up over the years, I think is. Is. I don't know that's the first thing that comes to mind. I know I will think of more things later today.

[Kate]

Yeah, yeah, no, it's totally fine. That's how all of our brains work these days. And we. We know.

[Kelly]

You can just boxer us later.

[Erin]

I will.

[Kate]

Well, I'll be sending out my.

[Erin]

This is what I meant to say voxibly.

[Kate]

Yes, totally. Kelly, what about you? A favorite destination or moment or most impactful time together that just spurred it to the next level for your business or life.

[Kelly]

I think Marco island was probably my favorite destiny. I mean, destination. We went to it. Things had just opened back up. We'd been stuck with our families for I don't know how long, and we were done being stuck with our families for how long. And we pull up to this. To this house, which literally looks like it should have been part of MTV cribs in the 90s. I mean, we pull up and we're all like, what in the world? Like, for. In honesty, eight, we are usually pretty frugal. We are pretty financially good stewards. But this house was huge. I mean, let's just be honest. It was huge. Like, we didn't use half of it. I think there's rooms we didn't even go into. But for me, that was probably the trip that solidified us as a group the most. We spent almost. I think it was five days together. It was one of our longer trips. We had a lot of deep conversations about family and about money and our businesses. We had a really baller pool that we were spending time in and bought our alcohol from Costco. So there was. There was enough of it to go around, but it was just a fun. That's like, I love all of our destinations, but that one has a real special place in my heart of just.

[Natalie]

Just.

[Kelly]

We just. I felt like we just really poured into each other a lot during those. Those days. And yeah, I'm favorite thing for my business. I think it's. You know, there's been many. Like, I think Palm Springs was probably the most strategic. You know, where we had the day and had the paper on the slider glass door and we all dove real deep and then we had papers that we took home with us. And. But each one has been, I think, super memorable. And I. What I loved about it is having the day or the time allows each one of us to keep going until we feel like we've had enough. And so you don't have that situation of somebody else button in with their stuff. Not that we've ever. But can happen.

[Kate]

Right?

[Kelly]

Like, you've got somebody that wants to do that. And, you know, we usually say, like, do you feel like you got what you needed? And that's how we kind of know that that's the end of that time. And then we can move on to dinner time, which is a little different.

[Kate]

Always fun.

[Kelly]

Yeah, it is always fun. But, yeah, the MTV Cribs house in Marco island is.

[Kate]

Yes. And that, like, for reference to. As members in the group have fallen off. That was our first one where it was just the four of us. And I agree, like, I think that was such a pivotal time to all, for all of us to connect. Nat, what about you? Like, what's your favorite?

[Natalie]

I am just, just smirking and giggling over here, thinking of all the crazy stories and circumstances that we have encountered. I think that we've met over. Met up over 10 times. I was just trying to make a list of it, but I looked over here and I have a picture from Nashville. Over here, I have a picture from Cabo. But I always think that the mech. I mean, I love every single trip. And all of us are going to say the same thing because they are trips that we plan, we organize. We have, as you can tell from Aaron's explanation of how we kind of bring all of us together. They're all thought through. Like, it's not like, you know, I don't think any of us go on a family trip without some sort of an idea of what we're going to be doing. And we treat this like a real trip. And at the same time, every single time we go, they are destinations on purpose because we're rewarding ourselves. I truly look at this as a business expense where I'm rewarding myself for the efforts of being a CEO of a growing business and keeping us and our team afloat and continuing to forge a difficult path of entrepreneurship. And so they're as much of a gift and a reward as they are that strategy that I need to feed my soul so I can continue in this path. So I always think that our Mexico destinations number one. When we go to Mexico. Mexico, it's a feat because of, you know, we're looking because of travel, but we get typically five days and, you know, that's a good amount of time. That's. That's the most refreshing for me because we get like a whole day or three quarters of a day to focus on each of us. And the thing is, this is also getting into, like, the structure piece. But, you know, I wake up that next morning and we're all Pretty early risers. And before we get to whose day it is, I'm following up with Kelly or Aaron or Kate or whoever. Usually it's Kelly or Aaron because I, I always, I was going to say sleep with Kate, but you can say.

[Kate]

That you can share my secret.

[Natalie]

So I usually get her at nighttime, but I'll follow up with questions with Kelly or Aaron in the morning and say, okay, we talked about this about me yesterday. Or it may be three days after my day, quote unquote day. And I'm still like noodling on things because as much as I'm giving and listening and I'm still learning from who else, you know, from other people. So anyway, I love the Mexico retreats. I, we have some serious moments there that are, you know, just unforgettable. I also love that we get taken care of and we truly get pampered. We get to go to the spa, we get amazing food and we always choose destinations that have good food because we've learned over our time we care.

[Kate]

About that there is no time to waste with crappy food. And not to cut you off now, but I think to, to piggyback off of that. I think what's interesting is the iteration of the economy, to Aaron's point about recession is that we chose this amazing resort in Mexico, LeBlanc. It's beautiful. You know, that was where we went in 2020 and it was, it was just very luxurious and amazing. And I don't know if we, we had talked about recession, but did we buy the coupon for the next year?

[Kelly]

That year?

[Kate]

Because we kind of knew and they were trying to get people to everybody. Everybody could see the writing on the wall. Travel was going to cease to exist and we were like, okay, 50% off, sure, we'll take it. And even this last one where we met in Vegas, it was a really great place but Kelly found it and it's through. We went to Virgin and it was, how can we get this as cheap as possible? Because we need to meet with each other. But we know we're spread thin financially. We know this is the time. It might not be our year to go to LeBlanc, but we will still make space to have good food and to have a really nice atmosphere because we are intentionally choosing to take time out and make it a reward. Like we have put in the hard work, like we have been in the dirt and this is going to be a give back to us, you know, not just to be with each other. I was actually wondering how many times we had met. So you got 10 so far, Nat.

[Natalie]

That's a round number. I don't know. Okay, well, we've been to Mexico four times.

[Kate]

Texas, Palm Springs, Nashville.

[Erin]

Nashville, Marco, Vegas.

[Kate]

Yeah, nine out of ten.

[Natalie]

See, I wound it up, girl math. Yeah, but two.

[Erin]

Two Cancuns and two cabos.

[Kate]

Yeah, right. Okay.

[Erin]

Or three Quabos. Yeah, two Cancuns and two cabos so far.

[Kate]

Because there was a time when we were trying to meet twice a year, and we planned on international and then stateside to make this money. Yeah, exactly. Yes. We're being real. There was 20. 20 money was fun times. Okay, I'm gonna switch this up a little bit. I was gonna do the giving advice to other business owners that want to pick mastermind a group. But before we get to that, I want to talk about a favorite memory. I don't care if it is an excursion or a moment. Like, what has been your funnest memory takeaway from one of our trips? Kelly.

[Kelly]

Nobody can tell the story of Kelly banging on the window.

[Natalie]

That was going to be. I. I thought about this when I was prepping. I was like, oh, can I do that?

[Kate]

So funny. Oh, well, then, Kelly, you get. You can rat yourself out if you want.

[Natalie]

I can.

[Kelly]

I mean, that isn't. It was one of my. It's not my favorite moment. It's just kind of who I am. But my favorite moment was whale watching, which I think somebody else will probably say and give some details on it. But that particular moment, we were at LeBlanc. We were at the night. The nicest restaurant at LeBlanc.

[Kate]

French one.

[Kelly]

Yeah, it was nice. And we were there early, so it wasn't like we were in there at like prime time dinner time. Like, we were one of the first reservations and we were having a good time. Like, we were being a little silly and the wine was flowing, maybe some champagne. You know, we were just having a good time. And there was an individual there with his pre teen girlfriend.

[Natalie]

He.

[Kelly]

Okay, let's be honest. It was like he was there with his pre teen girlfriend and he was shushing Natalie because they were. He thought we were being too loud. And he didn't do it once, but he did it like a couple of times. Like shushed you. And I was done with that. Like, no, I'm gonna shush my good friend. Like, I'll show you. And so we gave him some dirty looks and he just kind of kept going at it.

[Natalie]

So we left.

[Kelly]

Cause we were at the end of our meal anyway. But then I just decided to Take it a step further. And I went to the front window where they were sitting at, and I banged on the window in front of them. And I do believe I used some explicit to say how I felt about them. And then I walked off.

[Kate]

And then he flipped him the bird.

[Natalie]

Yeah.

[Kelly]

As well as saying, you know, how I felt about him.

[Kate]

Yes.

[Kelly]

Using four letter words a lot.

[Kate]

Yes. Yep. That was a good one.

[Natalie]

Kelly is our mama bear, though. Like, she. She is our mama bear. She loves us so fiercely, and she was straight pissed that this person would be rude to me. Now, I. I might have deserved it, because I know I was overserved.

[Kate]

Loud.

[Natalie]

And.

[Erin]

But frankly, she.

[Natalie]

We were early.

[Kelly]

It wasn't like. It was like 7 o' clock and everybody was there eating. The place wasn't even full. Like, I was just like, oh, good gosh.

[Kate]

And the staff was so supportive of us. They were not annoyed by us at all.

[Erin]

So.

[Kate]

Good.

[Natalie]

Yeah.

[Erin]

Yeah.

[Kelly]

I had some words to say to him and I banged on that window pretty loud.

[Kate]

Yeah, that is. It's a good one. Nat, what about you?

[Natalie]

I. You know, I don't know who here would not say the whale watching, like, that was like core memory for all of us. I. I can. I just. I saw the question, what was your favorite memory? And those were the two that popped up. Or seeing the whales, I'm telling you. Was that a March trip? So March in Cabo, if you're into the whales.

[Kate]

Even if you're not.

[Natalie]

It was like, unbelievable. And it was just. It was such a great experience to have. And luckily I was with these ladies to see that happen. And then, of course, Kelly's. Kelly's window banging came up really quickly thereafter. But, I mean, we've had great memories at every single place. Sometimes my takeaway is not necessarily. Necessarily the place, but. But what business lesson I got or what inspiration or what clarity I got, but. But Mexico and the whales is it for me?

[Kate]

Yeah. Aaron, what about you?

[Erin]

I. Ditto to both of those. However, y' all don't remember the Uber breaking down?

[Natalie]

Oh, that's a good one.

[Erin]

I'm glad.

[Kate]

Why y' all didn't say this in.

[Kelly]

The back of my brain?

[Natalie]

Because I thought we were get kidnapped.

[Kate]

And it was clueless, like, we're fine.

[Kelly]

So we die.

[Erin]

We did not die.

[Natalie]

Thankfully, we're all here.

[Erin]

So we went from LeBlanc. We went off property one of the few times we ever did, in large part because of horror stories that you hear that I'll never be us. We'll be fine. So we Go to this adorable precious farm to table. I've actually known several people to go there, including my sister. Anyways, but we Ubered over, and we're leaving and we're going back to the hotel.

[Kate]

It's a 25 minute drive or so. Not terrible.

[Erin]

And he's like, my car breaks down. I'm like, everybody out. We're out, we're out.

[Kate]

Get out, get out, get out.

[Erin]

He goes there, but this is what he said. And I speak Spanish, so. And he. I was talking to him, and he said, there's somebody else coming. I was like, nope, we're calling another Uber.

[Kate]

Absolutely not. This is how it happened. This is how I die in Mexico anyways. But if I'm gonna die in Mexico.

[Erin]

I want it to be with y'. All.

[Kate]

But anyways, we called a second, like.

[Erin]

Another Uber so that we didn't, like, get in this. Some other. They get stuffed in some other guy's truck. That wasn't gonna happen that day.

[Kelly]

Well, so anyways, wasn't Kate the only one that had phone coverage too? Because the rest of us are too cheap to have.

[Erin]

We only needed one, really.

[Kelly]

I know, right?

[Kate]

Anyways.

[Natalie]

Yeah, but he.

[Erin]

It literally was like, how you read. Like, the car breaks down, somebody else comes along. It was that exact scenario. And thankfully, I listened to enough true crime and enough missing people stories to see what's happening in the moment. I was like, y', all get away from the car. Come over here.

[Kate]

Everybody look every direction.

[Erin]

And the.

[Natalie]

The second car was, like, right there.

[Erin]

It was, like, coming around the little circle. I was like, nope, we're getting a new one. Bye.

[Kate]

You get no check. I'm pretty sure Natalie was like, I'm not telling Jess this. Like, well, now everybody knows. Yeah, now everybody knows. That was. That was hilarious. I forgot about that.

[Erin]

I did too. Yeah. I think all the other fun excursions to go. I mean, we've done so many fun things in addition, so well.

[Kate]

And that is a part of it, too, that we've curated it with this whole idea of, like, our dinners are usually really nice. Like, we will kind of scrap it up when it comes to, like, breakfast or lunch, but then we'll choose one really nice dinner for the week. Or maybe in this case, it was like an off property breakfast so that, you know, we actually had to pay for it there. And then we'll sometimes choose an excursion. And these excursions are so nice because we just kind of let down, right? We do something that's really fun in the area. We get out and in Cabo, we did the whale watching. And then in Marco island, we did the shelling, which was amazing. I had never done that. I didn't even know that was a thing. But I'm. We don't do that in the Northwest. So it was. But it was so cool because we went to this island, we just got to pick up all these shells and then lay them all out and take them home. And I still have them here. I have this bowl of shells as this memory, and that has been so cool for me, I think in Texas, we did the pet Nat. The sword thing at that snobby winery. Right. Where they were kind of snooty as well. I don't know. I don't. I don't actually think we were. I think it was like something weird about. I don't even remember what it was, but I do remember the sword, and that was pretty cool. Yeah. And even just the pool in Palm Springs, there has to be a pool. I think that has been our constant theme. Like, wherever we go, there must be a pool. Because the conversations about life, faith, and business oftentimes happen in the margins. And sometimes it can happen between all four of us or just two of us or three of us, but that's when you're kind of relaxed. And sure, we do this whole hot seat thing by the pool, too, but it's this time where you just. You are away from the business, you are not sitting in front of a computer, you are not doing any of that, but you are starting to let your brain relax and think. And these excursions or these nice dinners kind of releases that a little bit to where it. We do end up talking about business over dinner sometimes, or maybe somebody in their hot seat that day or their session is like, oh, I didn't bring this up. And so I'm going to bring it up now. And we get to end up having this really great conversation. And so, yeah, I think. I think the dolphins, for me might be. And the dome homes, which I've heard are no longer there after that hurricane. Yeah. So being able to see those was, like, super cool. And just. We just laugh, too. It's like we are actually getting this true physical release of all the tension and all the stress of business and life, and you're just getting to do something fun. And it's like most women in their late 40s, early 50s don't take enough time to do these types of. Of things. And especially the pressure of being an entrepreneur, I think, is pretty tough, too.

[Natalie]

Okay.

[Kate]

So to kind of round it out. If you each were talking to somebody about starting a mastermind or looking for one that they wanted to join, what would you tell them? It doesn't have to be one piece of advice, but like what would you say to them about where they needed to start? So Aaron, I'm going to start with you. Like, what would you tell someone who comes to, to you and says, I'm thinking of starting a mastermind? Well, what should I know before I start this?

[Erin]

I think it's about your intention and kind of taking little nuggets actually from all of you have said is like, you have to be willing to give and receive. You have to be willing to be open, you have to be vulnerable, you have to not judge, you have to have hard conversations. You have to let conflict refine you and make you better. There's, there's just, there's so, there's. It's such a complicated dynamic and I think just going in with, I shouldn't say complicated dynamic, there are a lot of dynamics at play in order to, I think, get what you need from a peer mastermind. And so to be willing to be, I think, just open and vulnerable in that kind of giving and receiving, which is kind of what we've shared all the way throughout. And then I think, you know, if it's not the right fit, you know, for yourself, bow out. You know, there's, there's no hard feelings anywhere from any of the bow outs that I had in previous ones or, you know, from our original seven. And so I think that that's just, you know, but it's also just keep putting yourself out there. And then I think also not being in a, in one that with somebody who's an immediate like competitor to you, that would be, that would be a hard no for me. But because you don't. I would. I mean there's such a thing as like coopetition. Right. Cooperating in competition, but that's I think at a higher level, not at this like life mastermind level. So I think that that would be something to be like, maybe your really good friend has, you know, a very, very similar business model to you, and then you're like, well, maybe you're gonna steal my things. Are you like, how do you protect that? I think that's, that's too, that that adds a lay, a layer of, you know, complication that is not worth it. So I think not being competitive would be another one. Yeah, just it's. But it's putting yourself out there, just doing it.

[Kate]

Yeah, for sure. Kelly, what about you?

[Kelly]

I think that one of the things that's made us work is that, at least for me, is that you have to be able to love deeply to each other and there will, there will be conflict. Like, I think that's something we haven't mentioned, but there has been conflict within the four of us before. And I think the thing that has allowed us to keep going is that the ability to say I'm sorry and I screwed up and can you forgive me? Because it's just natural that it's going to happen. I think that if you don't have that ability to love deeply, to forgive easily and also to ask for forgiveness and to listen for greater context and understanding, you know, I think you have to have those in order for a mastermind to have gone on as long as ours has. And so I would say those things and they're not easy to do, you know, but I think all of us come to the table with that and that's why I think we are as strong and as deep as we are. Like, I don't really believe that there is anything that we could come. I don't think there's anything that we could do happen with us that we wouldn't be able to work through. And I think it's because of those things.

[Kate]

Yeah, agreed.

[Erin]

For sure.

[Kate]

Nat, what about you?

[Natalie]

I think knowing, like being really aware, like if you're craving something like this, I mean this is like Life Coach 101. But really knowing your yourself first and being honest with what you need, where you are, what you want. And I, I would say that I have, I thought I was doing that with every group paid or peer that I was do that I have been a part of and there have been many, many, many that I have that, that I have been a part of. But really what, what makes this work for me is, is being ultimately aware of that and then looking at this from a whole person perspective. I have done and, and been somewhat satisfied in the past by being in groups that served me in, in one dimension, but not all dimensions. The reason that this one has longevity is that it is whole person. It is. You know, I can be going through a hellish personal time. I can be going through financial. I mean, one of the most raw moments that I will never forget is in Cancun talking first, Cancun talking about like real financial stress in my home, right. Had nothing to do with the business, had everything to do with the home. And you know, that formed a whole new level for me that I had Never been able to really fully express. And that was my feedback. My, my 360 at that moment of like whoa, this is like, like friendship on another level from people who barely know me. Right. And so anyway I, I just say my, my thing is looking at this from a whole person perspective. Not just you know, Aaron touched on, you know, sometimes I have, I've been in masterminds where they were all very similar to me. They were all service based or they were all moms or they were all this. And this is a, I mean this is truly a, a place, a bubble that we have created that is very whole person. It's very. We have a lot of similarities and we have a lot of differences and because of that we have been able to like persevere through the highs, the lows, the challenges, personal, the, the idiosyncrasies that we have as people in a group. And then it's, it's knowing that the transactional masterminds that I've been a part of did not work. And that's where I show up and I give, give, give, but I don't have. I'm not in the right place to ask and to receive and then know that everything is a season. We've talked about people exiting and by the way they self selected out. We didn't, it wasn't like a we kicked them out thing. It was like they had the awareness to raise their hand and say this isn't a good fit for me because of life or, or, or their season or a struggle or changing businesses or exiting business or whatever. But you know, if you find yourself, you know, don't feel like you have to, to build a mastermind or build a peer group that lives on forever, that's that that may not work. I would say that what we have cultivated feels somewhat unicorn like because. Oh for sure the things that we have seen and been a part of in the past. But I think the biggest thing is just the whole person knowing that I have been most fulfilled here because I could be pretty and I could be ugly and I could be together and I could be clear and I can be all those things in, in this one container. And if I could go back and look at those other groups that I have been a part of in the past, what didn't serve me was that they weren't whole person.

[Kate]

Yeah, that is. That sums it up really well. I don't really have a lot to add to what the three of you have said besides be open to take a risk because it is A risk, like, it was a risk to all meet in Cancun and be vulnerable, to lean in, to say, okay, I, I am going to try it. And I think that is part of the risk. The risk isn't getting on a plane and going to Cancun like that. Anybody can get on a plane. The risk is showing up in a small group. And when it's your turn to share these pieces of yourself, to watch how they're received, to feel the, the bumping up against and knowing, like, are these my people? Can I connect with them? Can I go deep with them? And that only comes from being willing to risk vulnerability. And that is hard when you are in an online business space, because what do you do all day? You are in your own space by yourself. And Kelly, to your point, you tend to go more introvert. So it's even harder for you because you know, you. It's talking, right? Like, that is what a mastermind is. It's a lot of peopleing, it's a lot of talking. And now it's easy for us because we kind of know our rhythms. But in the beginning, you have to be open to taking a risk. And for a lot of people, that's just not something they're willing to do. And there's no shame in that. It's fine. But when you find yourself presented with an opportunity, be it at a conference late at night when there's a very excessive happy hour and you come up with this idea, take hold of it. Don't just see it as like, well, that's a pie in the sky idea that would never work. Grab hold, start telling a few other people, and they'll tell a few other people, and you'll end up with a few people in Mexico. And then 10 years later or so, you can be like, yeah, it worked. It actually ended up working. But it took hard work. It took vulnerability, and it took being able to say yes to each and every trip because each of us says yes, knowing full well this is time out of our family lives. This is time out of our business lives. We know our team needs us. We've. We've all answered, you know, slacks and boxer messages by the pool or late at night. But we put prioritization off it on it because we risked at first. And I just think that is such an important thing that I would tell anybody. And even in this day and age where things have changed in online space, ask great questions, too. Like, ask people questions about, have they taken personality tests? Have they, like, how are they wired? What's their view of the future with their business? Are they in it to win it? Like, it'd be really hard. I think all of you would agree with this, to join a mastermind right now with somebody who's been in business, like, one or two years because you just. It's so volatile. Right? And I think that was a unique thing about our group, was that we hadn't been in business a chunk of time enough to know, like, okay, we're, we're in it. But also, it was a different time then, too. I think that's something important to highlight. 2017, 2018 leading to 2020 money was fantastic, right? Like, those are golden years.

[Natalie]

We thought they were hard, though.

[Kelly]

I love the fact, though, like, we were, okay, we call it 2020 money, but. And we've had that, and then we've now having 2025 money, which is very different. But I think we're still finding ways.

[Kate]

To make it work.

[Kelly]

And I think that's, you know, we still do.

[Kate]

Yeah, it's so important. Well, ladies, thank you for sharing your story here on this podcast. I'm sure people listening. Well, actually, I'll say, I hope people listening were inspired and encouraged, and I at least gave you a little idea or something that you could start on your own. And we would all encourage you to do that. We would all encourage you to step out in faith. And, you know, next time you meet somebody at a conference and you strike up a great conversation, lean in and go big on that. So thanks, ladies, for being on the podcast, and I'm excited to see how our story impacts other people.

[Kelly]

Sa.