The hidden cost of business masterminds

I’ve spent thousands on business masterminds over the years.

I’ve paid for online and in-person masterminds. Online masterminds are convenient. You can join the weekly accountability calls and check-ins on your lunch break or at night.

But I find all those weekly Zoom calls and live cohorts exhausting. It’s also hard to get value from a program where you must wait your turn to ask the facilitator a question. I’ve sometimes paid more to circumvent that problem and get 1:1 time with the facilitator.

In-person masterminds are more fun. I’ve met people from industry and niche at masterminds like these. Learning from someone two or three steps ahead is more straightforward than following an online guru. Ideally, I pick up some strategies for solving a problem in my business, too.

In 2023, I went to a Mastermind where they talked about hiring. I realized I was overpaying a content editor for one of my sites by at least $1k a month. Wondering about the merits of keeping them on, I checked their work and found many overlooked mistakes. So, I let them go and indirectly saved myself the Mastermind’s cost.

A few years ago, I flew from Dublin, Ireland, to a mastermind for bloggers in Austin, Texas. At that Mastermind, I met some bloggers and creators that I collaborated for a few years. I also earned back the cost of the Mastermind on a joint-venture promotion.

In-person masterminds aren’t cheap, though. Expect to pay upwards of $10k and sign a commitment for 6–12 months. They don’t always work either, particularly if you’re in the wrong room with the wrong people!

A while ago, I joined a local business mastermind. The business owners inside were running 7-figure businesses. They wanted to scale.

The room was packed full of super smart entrepreneurs. The only problem?

Most of them were running traditional brick-and-mortar businesses like engineering companies and shops. My business exists online, so I didn’t learn much from them. I left the program after a few months.

Masterminds aren’t for everyone. They’re an expensive distraction if you’re starting out and only earning a few K a month. If your business is growing and you feel stuck, they’re worth the cost.

If you’re considering signing up for one this year, find out who else is inside the program and if they’ve achieved what you want to do. Ideally, you’ll collaborate with these people, so find out in advance if they’re a good fit.

Most masterminds, whether online or in-person, come without a refund guarantee. So before handing over your credit card or slapping your signature on a Docusign, ask the organizer or salesperson these 3 questions:

1. Who else is in the program?
2. What’s the expected return from this program?
3. How and when will I get it?