8 Ways to Expand Your Dream Support Team

Last updated on March 28th, 2024 at 03:01 pm

An idea is hidden in the American psyche that if you work hard enough on your own, your dream will come true, your success rests firmly on your shoulders, and if you don’t “make it,” it’s 100% your fault.

It’s a pretty limiting way to look at the world–don’t you think?

Yes–I believe that we are responsible for our lives. It’s unfair to make the people who love you responsible for your well-being. They are dog-paddling through life, too, right next to you.

HOWEVER.

And a big “however” here . . .

Your dream achievement success is based on the people you reach out to and who you reach out to collectively create change together.

You can’t achieve your big dream on your own.

No one does anything of significance by themselves. It takes a village.

What bugs me about many successful people is that they aren’t transparent about how much support they have, their privilege, and the time involved in producing what you see. Typically, you only see one person. (Think Oprah – and I do like her) There’s this illusion that success is completely self-made.

Many successful people have personal admins, editors, agents, PR people, spouses who are IT people, partners who make a killer living at a corporate job with great benefits, a house cleaner, a mother or father who babysits, and a son that codes websites working in the background to create that successful illusion. You just don’t see all of the behind-the-scenes support because you don’t personally know them.

When you start working on your dream, you will naturally compare yourself against those you perceive to be better (or successful) at what you want. You’ll feel like a failure when you aren’t closing the gap between you and your dream idol. But you may not be seeing the twelve other people at work in the background to help that successful person, while you are probably working alone, raising kids, a partner, and working another job.

You are one person. You can only do so much in a day.

Right at the start of your dream, you must explore ways to grow your own success team. Don’t think of your dream as a one-person entity. This doesn’t necessarily mean that you need to spend a lot of money to get help when you are in the start-up phase of your dream.

8 Ways to Expand Your Dream Support Team

1. Mastermind Groups.
Ugh. I know. I hate the word too, but don’t limit yourself to a traditional view of what a “Mastermind Group” can be. A Mastermind Group can be anything from joining Toastmasters so that you speak better in your online videos to starting a Meetup group that supports your passion (one dreamer started a photography meetup group) to joining an online group (think LinkedIn or Facebook) with like-minded individuals who will support your dream.

You may also want to look into legitimate Mastermind Groups where you meet regularly online to discuss what works for you. One Mastermind Group that I know of meets to discuss their upcoming books being published that need reviews/testimonials and what kind of marketing is effective. Each member commits to reading the books, offering feedback, and completing an Amazon review. They also promote each other through their email newsletter lists.

You can start your own Mastermind Group. 8WomenDream, Tiny Buddha, and Medium (to name a few) accept user-generated content. By joining up with others, you can be part of building something larger than yourself, which can help you with your dreams. Exposure is everything when you are trying to be a success. Think of Mastermind groups as a springboard.

2. Feedback Loops.
You have to accept feedback to become a success at whatever you do. If you cannot accept feedback, you need to stop your dream journey and find a great counselor who can help you with this before you continue. Accepting feedback keeps your ego in check and is the key to success.

How you set up your feedback loop is purely a personal journey. Maybe you buy the latest copy of Writer’s Market, begin submitting articles for publication, and see what rejection or acceptance letters you receive. Or, you connect with a local editor and work out a trade or a fee for reviewing certain work for feedback where your writing is weak. If you’re a budding photographer, offer a popular professional photographer 8 hours of donated time each month for a year. Think of what you could learn volunteering or working for someone ahead of you on your dream journey. They will give you feedback on your work and help you become a success.

3. Mentors.
Mentors can help you stay focused and behave like a grown-up. It’s so easy to get distracted on your dream journey. There are kids, spouses, parents, work, and commitments—all crying for your attention. A mentor can help you stay focused on yourself.

You could find a life coach or simply offer to take your banker to lunch once a month. Your creativity is unlimited. Some have followed their dream mentors through their Twitter accounts by sharing and promoting their work to slowly gain trust. In exchange, they’ve received great advice.

SCORE (Score.org) is probably the best-known organization that provides free (and confidential) mentoring to small business owners via its national network of 13,000 retired business executives, leaders, and volunteers. SCORE’s volunteer mentors share their expertise through in-person and online counseling (via email). (Source: Score.org Find Your Small Business Mentor).

4. Domestic Support.
You are going to need to create space to work on your dream, and cutting back on housekeeping can free up all kinds of time. This goes right along with organizing and simplifying your life. If you cannot afford a house cleaner, can you get rid of stuff by holding a garage sale? Maybe you make enough to pay for housecleaning once a month for a year.

If having a house cleaner doesn’t appeal to you, can you clear your clutter so you have less to deal with? The more knick-knacks you have, the more dusting you do. Simple things like making people put their shoes on a shelf by the front door mean you vacuum less. Insist that dinner isn’t over until everyone has cleaned up everything so no one is left standing in the kitchen doing most of the work (you). This could save you 15 minutes a night- an extra hour and a half each week.

5. PR.
Every dreamer needs PR or a PR person. This could mean anything from hiring a PR agent to writing your own press releases. You need help selling you. A well-crafted press release can bring you help from unexpected sources and possible media attention. I like what Andy Ashby of the Memphis Business Journal advises:

“If you really want to get the attention of a serious journalist working at a serious publication, talk realistically about impact. My editor always asks, ‘So what, who cares?’ Tell people in that industry why they should care.”

I like PRWeb for press releases, and they’re not cheap. Your press releases will end up on major publications online, and if you use this correctly, a PRWeb press release can help you launch your dream.

6. Social Media Groups.
Create your own Facebook or LinkedIn group to support your efforts. The group can include everything from sharing your best tips and practices to sharing and promoting each other’s entrepreneurial pursuits. You can also ask for feedback on everything from your projects to your website.

Former Baywatch beauty Gina Lee Nolin created a Facebook group to answer the question for herself: Could she still feel sexy even though she had Hashimoto’s disease? At over 64k followers, her once small group has shared everything about dealing with autoimmune diseases and helped Gina launch a book on the subject.

7. Virtual Admins.
Hire a virtual assistant to help you from time to time. LongerDays.com is located in Muskegon, Michigan, and is considered one of America’s largest virtual assistant services. They offer a range of monthly subscription plans that allow you to purchase a quantity of time you can afford while still getting the assistance you need. This is a flat membership fee.

You can also offer to teach an intern what you know in exchange for helping you…

8. Network offline.
Think about joining an offline networking group like Toastmasters, BNI, your local Chamber of Commerce, or a volunteer organization to get you out from behind your desk and into the living, breathing world. Networking can give you a fresh perspective and help you pitch your dream.

Pitching to strangers helps you showcase your experience, capabilities, and the viability of your dream. You quickly gain valuable feedback and make adjustments accordingly. You never know who might offer to help you.

Creating a successful support team to help you make your dream come true is one of the most important things you can do to ensure your success. No one can be a success by themselves, and at some point, you are going to hit maximum velocity, and you won’t be able to move forward on your dream without help.

Remember that you can’t do it alone and shouldn’t want to. But there is support; you don’t have to spend a fortune to find it. Just remember…