Do You Have a Personal Board of Directors?

A trusted mentor of mine shared with me long ago the notion of having a Personal Board of Directors.  Would you like to know more?  If so, read on.  If not, take a long walk of a short bridge…

I don’t think this blog’s audience needs a tutorial in the typical role of a Board – most would agree that the presence of this guiding body of wise (and mostly old) sages is a conceptually sound idea: get a bunch of smart, experienced, accomplished, and hopefully diverse perspectives in a room to regularly make sure the company a) has its act together and b) is generally headed in the right direction.  So if this has proven to be a good for companies, I’d argue that it is similarly good for individuals.  Get a bunch of people who are respected, trusted, and recognized in their respective fields to sit on your own Board of Directors.  They shouldn’t come from your current company or job; rather, they should be out there doing other cool things.  Seek them out, interview them, and hire them.  Charge them with helping to guide, counsel, and direct your career (or other endeavor).  Give them a charter and hold them accountable to it.  Tell them you’re serious about this.  Keep them apprised of your progress, call regular meetings to discuss what’s hot, call emergency meetings for matters of particular significance.  And do all of this as a group…not as individuals.  What’s in it for them?  A chance to mentor someone who’s got it going on, an opportunity to network with others, and potentially an opportunity for exotic travel if you hold your annual meetings “off-site.”  What’s in it for you?  A thoughtful, thorough, and committed mechanism for regular mentoring and career development outside of the laborious confines of your company’s process (if it exists at all).

I don’t know, I kind of like it.  Let me know what you think…