Get monthly coaching and support to FINALLY gain momentum in your business without burning out in the process. 🦄 Learn more about WAIM Unlimited.
Building a trust circle is not difficult. These people are, most likely, already in your life and already helping you.
I stumbled into having a trust circle in 2012. I built relationships with people through social media, through attending conferences, and even wearing t-shirts for their businesses, and felt a certain level of trust with them. When the idea for BuyMyLastName appeared in my crazy marketing brain in August 2012, I knew exactly who to share it with first.
These people are, most likely, already in your life and helping you. I find it important to establish the relationship with them ahead of time and let these people know you’d like to be able to count on them for honest and speedy feedback.
My trust circle ranges from 6-12* people at any given time and not a single one of them knows they’re in a “trust circle.” They’re simply a group of individuals, who aren’t connected in any way, that I would feel comfortable emailing for advice.
*There’s no hard and fast rule about how big or small a trust circle needs to be. If you only have three people in your trust circle, that’s cool!
No one has ever said no to me when I ask them if I can reach out to them with ideas (probably because I always have some sort of rapport with these folks). When building your own trust circle, don’t harbor any ill-will toward anyone that might say “no” to an invitation to give you advice. Simply understand that some people are busier than others and you wouldn’t say “yes” to everyone that asked you to be in their trust circle.
I expect the folks in my trust circle to do a few things for me, but only because I’ve vetted these folks and know they can meet my expectations.
This is honestly the most important thing for my trust circle. Sometimes you get an idea and want to move on it quickly. These people are an email or text message away and they always respond swiftly.
My mom and my grandmother are not in my trust circle (as silly as that sounds). This is because they love me to death and will support any crazy thing I come up with. I purposely don’t have close friends or family in my trust circle either. I have business acquaintances that I respect who have built businesses of their own. I want them to say, “Jason, this idea sucks. What about this…?”
While I want quick and honest feedback, I also want more from their feedback than just a “yes” or a “no.” Your trust circle shouldn’t be people who are going to pat you on the back. They should be people who are going to massage your back for hours (not literally, well, okay maybe).
The people in my trust circle are best selling authors, entrepreneurs, artists, marketing coordinators, fashion designers, bloggers, and more. I love that they’re all different because they all offer a unique perspective. It’s also a plus when they all think an idea is awesome (that usually means the idea has wide-spread potential!).
Notice I didn’t say anything about buying, sharing, or offering any type of fulfillment with the folks in my trust circle. Your trust circle is brainpower. It’s feedback. It’s a group that has a varied set of experience from which you can learn.
You may not fill up your trust circle right away and that’s okay. In all likelihood, you have three or four business acquaintances right now (maybe through friends of friends?) who would be willing to help you.
These people shouldn’t expect anything from you in return. Remember, this group is built completely on trust for you.
So, who’s in your trust circle?
One of the byproducts of having a tough year was that my nutrition plan derailed from 2012 when I had gotten myself back in great shape.
When I get stressed out, the last thing I want to do is eat healthy and spend time preparing meals.
Earlier this year I decided to kick my ass back in gear and start focusing on eating healthier again. The nutrition plan I used in 2012 was incredibly effective, so I knew I wanted to go back to some version of it. There was one problem. Each day of the week starts with eggs for breakfast. I don’t mind eating eggs, but I loathe making them (this is where the photo above comes into play).
My problem with having eggs for breakfast had nothing to do with the eggs. The problem was in the tools I was using to make the eggs. I had this pan that was quite simply a pain in the ass. I tried using grape seed oil, coconut oil, baking spray, butter, and other coating substances, but no matter what I used the pan always ended up crusty and hard to clean. Through trial and error I found that cooking the eggs on medium-low heat worked much better, but then it took me about 10 minutes to scramble eggs (that’s ridiculous) and the pan was still a pain to clean.
To preface the remainder of this post I want to share a little nugget I’m not proud of: I’ve never purchased a pot or pan in 31 years of life. The pots and pans I own were hand-me-downs from my mom, who is an incredibly good cook. I knew she bought quality products and I knew they weren’t cheap.Â
One day last month I got fed up. My eggs were slightly burnt. The non-stick pan was not being very non-stick. It took way longer than it should have to cook my breakfast and clean up. I wanted to stop eating eggs and find a breakfast alternative.
Then it hit me. The pan I was using was easily 10 years old. I had no clue what it would cost to replace the pan, but I knew it was probably time. So after finishing another grueling battle of scrambling eggs I grabbed my iPhone and went to Amazon.com. I typed in “best non-stick pan” and hit the search button.
The results shocked me. The first result (which you see in the photo above) was a $38 pan with nearly 2,000 positive reviews! $38!?
I bought the $38 Green Earth Frying Pan (aff link) and even opted for $3.99 overnight shipping. Thanks Amazon Prime!
The next day the pan showed up. I read the instructions, even though I was pretty sure I knew how a pan worked, and gave it a quick wash. I put the pan on the stove, added a small chunk of butter (the new pan said it needed less than normal pans), and cracked my eggs in the pan. I grabbed the spatula I normally used to scramble my eggs and a miracle happened. My eggs didn’t stick to the pan. The non-stick pan was actually non-stick!
When I finished cooking my eggs, the pan was nearly 100% clean. No gross crusty eggs. No burnt eggs. A quick rinse and swipe with a soapy sponge and the pan was spotless. My cooking and cleaning time went from 10-12 frustrating minutes to 4-5 frustration-free minutes. An increase in efficiency, but even better, an 100% decrease in my irritation with cooking eggs.
I used to wake up and hate the idea of cooking breakfast. I knew it was going to be time consuming and bothersome. For a mere $38 I fixed this problem.
For some reason I was hesitant to invest in a new tool for the job. I had built up this idea in my mind that the pan I had was the right tool. I also thought good pots and pans had to be expensive. I was wrong on all accounts. The $38 I invested in a new pan has been worth every single penny. Even if that pan only last 6 months (which I’m sure it will last way longer), I’d happily spend another $38 to replace it. The value it brings me in saving time and frustration is through the roof!
I don’t hate cooking breakfast anymore. I don’t loath putting in the work each morning because I have the right tools to do the job.
So how does this apply to your life? Well first off, if you don’t have a good pan for cooking eggs, I can’t recommend the 12″ Green Earth Pan (aff link) enough. Secondly, look at areas of your life where you find yourself frustrated. Maybe it’s managing social media accounts? Your email inbox? Your to-do lists? Your daily schedule? No matter what it is, when you have the right tool, the work becomes way less frustrating. We’re all adverse to change by nature, but if you can force yourself to try new tools, I bet you’ll find yourself becoming more efficient and hating whatever the thing is that you currently hate less.
You don’t need to go out and spend thousands of dollars on every fancy tool out there for every project, but I highly recommend giving new tools a try. I’m willing to bet a $38 pan you’ll be surprised at how trying a new tool can completely change the way you feel about the work you need to do.
Invest in the right tools. The right tools should make your work easier and frustration-free.
