Tara Humphrey
- Jul 14, 2021
- 4 min read

The Benefits of having a Mastermind Group, Business Coach and Mentor

For those of you running your network, own business or in a leadership position, I strongly believe you have to proactively and intentionally look to surround yourselves with an 'A-Team' to support you in reaching your full potential.

We all need to seek guidance, support and receive a little extra help here and there, and outside of our friends and family a business coach or mentor can really help.

A coach can be invaluable in;

Building confidence
Introducing you to resources you never knew existed
Pushing you out of your comfort zone
Creating a strategy
Developing new offerings
Enhancing your service or product, guiding you to make a decision you are struggling with
Etc……

Choosing the right person

Ideally, your coach OR mentor needs to be someone;

With an appreciation of the opportunities ahead of you and the challenges, you are going through.
With the ability to interpret a lot of information quickly and identify the main areas to focus on.
Who you can be open with.
Who will give you honest feedback.
Who is a positive influence.
With resources and tools you can draw on.
Who will hold you accountable.
Who (like you) is seeking to better their performance which in turn will give you more insights, tools, resources and connections to draw on.

You may be able to access this support via 1-2-1 coaching or through group coaching. You can pursue a formal business coach and pay for their expertise or choose someone who you respect to mentor you. I have done both and had fantastic experiences each time.

How to Maximise Your Coaching Experience

A Coach isn't a magic bullet that will miraculously get you to your goal. There is work required on your part. You'll need to be prepared to answer uncomfortable questions and perhaps even be set homework outside of your session - depending on yours and your coach's style.

I created a free resource to help you extract the most value from your coaching sessions. This is ideal if you have a coach or are considering hiring a coach.

Download your guide here

Mastermind Groups and 1-2-1 Coaching

To help you visualise what this support looks like in practice, here is an overview of one of my previous coaching programmes.

An 8-person mastermind that included one to one sessions with a business coach (the same person who facilitated the mastermind group.
Online video calls where we could all see and interact with each other.
Every 2 weeks we shared a win and gave an update of the 2-week goal we set ourselves.

Each session, 3 of us took our turn in the hot seat where we:

Shared a challenge we are experiencing
Posed a question
Shared our thoughts on how we planned to progress our businesses, projects, departmental objectives.

The rest of the group listens and then facilitated by our business coach, we would have a brainstorming session and give feedback on the issue.

It’s honestly amazing!!!!!

The participants in my mastermind group were based in America with women working in California, Oregon, Minnesota, Texas, Nevada, Arkansas, Michigan, Washington, and Orange county.

The group included a pharmacist, solicitor, branding specialist, organisation development specialist, weight loss specialist and speech therapist.

Connecting to these highly successful entrepreneurs and receiving their support and insights has been invaluable and even though they do not operate in my field of work in the same country as me, the principles of business are universal.

We are all in the pursuit of becoming better;

Leaders
Communicators
At Marketing service, project or product
At providing an amazing customer experience
At generating revenue
At managing cash flow
At managing resources effectively
At making difficult decisions
At dealing with conflict
At admitting and overcoming our mistakes
At respectively pushing the boundaries in our industry and amongst our peers
At developing systems and processes
At working within a complex environment
At balancing the reactive nature and forward planning elements of our work
At setting ambitious goals
At managing stress
At people management

My 1-2-1 session takes more of a deep dive into an aspect of my business or project and to be honest we discuss mindset a lot.

We all know that when doubts and a negative mindset sets in, it really can derail you, so having a private space where you can share what’s on your mind gives you that boost of positivity to keep you focused on the things you can control.

Where can you find a Business Coach?

First, start with your personal network to see if anyone you know can make a referral.
LinkedIn will have thousands of coaches.
Your local small business federation or chambers of commerce should be able to point you in the right direction.
You can start your own mastermind group with a few of your peers.

If you're in a Primary Care Network or Healthcare Leadership role or own your own healthcare business, I can work with you to help you reach your goals. Find out about my coaching service here.

"Over the six sessions I've really taken all the notes you've given me on-board and it's really transformed the company internally and my life personally because now I'm not overwhelmed, I'm back on my feet and I'm so grateful for the support you have given me. Thank you so much Tara!”

Joanna Ashby

Co-Founder & Chief Medical Officer of Mpod Inc

A final word!

Whether you are a newbie or consider yourself to be a veteran – if you're striving to be the best – you need a Coach in your All-Star Team.

Listen to Episode 141 on The Business of Healthcare Podcast where I interview my Health Coach, Dr Helen Lawal for self-coaching questions, what to expect from a good coach, where to find a coach and the principles to help you maximise your coaching experience.

Don't forget to download your free resource for more on how to get the most from your coaching, including an introduction to coaching, questions, checklist and resources.

Tara Humphrey is the founder of THC Primary Care, a leading healthcare consultancy specialising in workforce transformation and the host of the Business of Healthcare Podcast.

Tara and her team also work with GP federations supporting the implementation of clinical services.

Tara has over 20 years of project management and business development experience across the private and public sector and has an MBA in Leadership and Management in Healthcare, is published in the London Journal of Primary Care and is the author of over 200 blogs.