how to start a dare club

start a dare club

story characters authoress excerpts dareitude buzz media dare tour book clubs purchase fun

dare to be b.a.d.

Beautiful and Daring

a novel about finding true love... in you...

What would you DARE to do if you knew you could not fail?

Congrats on deciding to start your own Dare to Be group! This will be an adventure! Have you or your group members worked in clubs or groups before? If so, you may want to decide whether the format or techniques you're familiar with are ones you want to continue in this club. If not, then the sky's the limit! You can meet in person, on the telephone, or via online message boards.

What is a Dare to Be group? Dare to Be groups are sister circles generally, but they can be co-ed, formulated on the concept of a Mastermind Group. Of course, the original Mastermind Groups didn't wear have official Dare T-shirts, Dare caps or Dare journals, but you can!

What is a Mastermind Group?

There is synergy of energy, commitment, and excitement that participants bring to a Mastermind Group. The beauty of Mastermind Groups is that participants raise the bar by challenging each other to create and implement goals, brainstorm ideas, and support each other with total honesty, respect and compassion. Mastermind participants act as catalysts for growth, devil’s advocates and supportive colleagues.

The concept of the Mastermind Group was formally introduced by Napoleon Hill in the early 1900's. In his timeless classic, "Think And Grow Rich" he wrote about the Mastermind principle as:

"The coordination of knowledge and effort of two or more people, who work toward a definite purpose, in the spirit of harmony."

He continues ...

"No two minds ever come together without thereby creating a third, invisible intangible force, which may be likened to a third mind."

In a Mastermind Group, the agenda belongs to the group, and each person’s participation is key. Your peers give you feedback, help you brainstorm new possibilities, and set up accountability structures that keep you focused and on track. You will create a community of supportive colleagues who will brainstorm together to move the group to new heights.

You'll gain tremendous insights, which can improve your business and personal life. Your Mastermind Group is like having a objective board of directors.

Finding People Check with friends to see if anyone has an interest in starting a group. If not, or if you don't find enough people, you may want to try posting on Craigslist.

Group Membership and Size How many people you want in the group? And does everyone gets to work their goals and dreams each time? Personally I like to have 5-6 people in a group, including the designated facilitator, and meet for about 2 hours. That way everyone will have 20 minutes to work their material and interact with others while they are working theirs.

Time Commitment You may want to get a time commitment for the group before it begins (say 3-6 months at established dates and times) and ask people if they would like to contribute a nominal fee (such as $1 each meeting) to cover refreshments (sometimes paying helps people stay more committed). It sometimes takes a little while for a group to bond, but once it does the depth of the work that can be done is incredible, so if the meetings or attendance are haphazard it can defeat deeper connections within the group.

Group Leadership There are basically two kinds of groups: those without facilitators or leaders (known as "peer" groups), or those with leaders. In my experience, one of the things that sometimes can happen in peer clubs and groups is that, without someone being assigned (even in a rotating fashion) as a facilitator, the group can become unfocused and the work less meaningful to all, so, personally, I think it's important to have one person responsible each time for leading and assuring that the interactions and comments of others in the group are respectful and responsible.

Group Format and Process The format of the evening process should be considered and decided upon ahead of time. Most groups like to have some kind of a check-in or housekeeping period where, for 10 minutes or so, people can bring news to the group, share dream books, provide follow-up on something from the last meeting, or just share a life situation or event that is up for them. Some groups also spend a few minutes in silence or meditation to center on the work ahead, or light candles at the beginning of the group to bring something desireable in. Having some kind of ritual (non-religious) helps to provide structure for the dreamwork itself.

Ground Rules or Guidelines for the Group
It's important to lay down some "ground rules" for everyone at the beginning of the group, addressing such issues as confidentiality, respecting time limits and each other, and taking responsibility for feedback given. For Example...

We agree to:

1. Respect Confidentiality. To create a safe environment for opening up to each other's dreams, we agree that what is said in the group stays within the group. Sharing dreams is a deeply personal experience, and may sometimes reveal parts of ourselves that we need support in keeping private or confidential.

2. Respect the Speaker.

3. Take Responsibility for Our Feedback to Others.

4. Attend and Participate. We agree to listen carefully and with our full awareness to dreams which are presented, and to avoid interrupting the speaker for any reason. We also agree to ask questions, provide feedback, and express appreciation as appropriate to better understand the dream from our own personal perspective.

5. Keep our Goal or Daring to Dream Alive Between Our Meetings. We agree to look for ways in which we can keep the positive energy flowing in our waking lives, and to share the results of that experimentation with each other when we meet again.

In Stores Nationwide

ORDER NOW: Simon & Schuster | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

A Simon & Schuster Pocket Books Paperback Original

Click the principles of dareitude for extended DARE affirmations.

Dare Harmony Truth Joy Beauty Moxie Love

HEY-- What's your dareitude?

Can a fiction book be used as motivation? I hope so! Dareitude is about having the courage to live the most joyful life possible. Get the DARE factor and DARE to get a life.

In Dare Maya found out that sometimes a good girl has to become a bad girl to reclaim her personal power. After all, life is meant to be fun, right? And B.A.D. stands for beautiful and daring just like D.A.R.E. stands for Dreams Are Real, Everybody!

The principles of DAREITUDE, and the keys to the DARE FACTOR are Harmony, Truth, Joy, Beauty, Moxie and Love.

DARE worksheets and affirmations are worked into the story of Maya and Athena in the novel Dare. This is a special gift, extended affirmations not included in the book, plus additional motivation. Enjoy!

xo,

P.S. You can also check out my fun, new blog!