Creating your own mastermind groups will help you to grow your business or strengthen your organization.

There are many factors that affect the success of your group, but one of the most important is the selection of the right participants: Who do you want to be part of your dream team?

I’ve been running mastermind groups for 27 years, and I’ve been teaching others how to create and run groups since 2005. Over time, these are the crucial six factors I’ve discovered for selecting the right people to be part of your mastermind group:

1. Commitment

No mastermind group will function for long if people are not willing to make a sustained commitment to the group. Commitment comes in two forms: commitment to showing up for every meeting without excuse, and commitment to participating fully in the mastermind group process. That means they have to prepare for meetings and not “wing it” when they arrive, and it means they must follow up on their planned actions and get things done.

2. Balanced two-way sharing

The true benefit of a mastermind group is the brainstorming that happens when one member presents a problem, challenge or decision, and the entire group gets involved with idea and solution generation. The best members are those who are willing to both ask for help and give help. Sometimes you will find members who either want to hog the limelight or who never ask for help at all. Finding members who will participate in a full and balanced way goes a long way towards making a successful group.

3. Follows the rules

Every group should have written mastermind group rules and guidelines about what’s acceptable behavior and what’s expected from each person. Group members vote on these guidelines so that everyone is in agreement, and every group member must abide by the guidelines. Remember, you are trying to create a spirit of harmony and trust with your group; guidelines help to set the boundaries and create a safe place for everyone.

4. No competitors

It is impossible for someone to be open about their problems, or about their next great idea, if one of their competitors is listening in. When choosing your mastermind group members, be diligent about the connections between people and separate competitors into different mastermind groups as necessary.

5. Similar success and experience levels

One way to guarantee that your mastermind group will fail is having people at different experience levels in it. The more experienced members end up mentoring the less experienced members but get no real value for themselves. Being in a mastermind group with people who are more successful is great for the junior member, but eventually, the more experienced members quit the group in frustration. Instead, try to find people who have similar levels of experience and success.

6. Varied skills and knowledge base

It’s not always possible to screen members about the skills and knowledge they bring to the group. In an ideal group, however, members come from different backgrounds and have special talents they share with the group. For instance, I once belonged to a mastermind group focused on internet marketing. One member was a social media expert, one was a branding expert, one is a copywriting expert, etc. In this way, you can tap into the wisdom of the people who study a topic and use it daily, and get the added benefit of hearing from everyone about how they personally approach a problem or topic. The experts bring granular detail and the rest of the group brings experience, ideas and intelligent questions.

I would not be as successful today if it weren’t for the mastermind groups that I have been a part of. They’re extraordinarily powerful, and the members find incredible support and encouragement, as well as creative and exciting ideas and solutions.

By taking your time when putting together your membership, you’ll have a successful and productive group for years to come.