If you really want to grow your network and reach a higher level of success in your life as a writer, you must invest in yourself.

There is a lot you can learn from books, conferences, videos, and podcasts. But those can only take you so far. The true test of how badly you want success is whether you are willing to part with your hard-earned cash in order to learn more and invest in deeper relationships.

Let’s focus specifically on paid communities, such as the Daily Writer Club, or mastermind groups.

Here’s the thing with paid groups in general—the fact that people are paying to be there means they are more serious about growing and learning. And that, by definition, is a barrier to entry, which means the quality of the people in the group will likely be higher than in free groups.

I’m not saying free groups are bad by any means, but if you really want to accelerate your progress, a paid community or mastermind is the way to go.

I’m currently part of four paid communities 1.) the 48 Days Eagles led by Dan Miller, 2.) Total Life Freedom Community, led by Vincent Pugliese, 3.) Ghostwriter School Elite, led by Nick Pavlidis, and 4.) the Empire Builders Mastermind, led by Honoree Corder. Each of these groups is different in the way we interact, and what’s included, but they are all very powerful and very helpful.

Now I know a lot of people will immediately object, “I don’t have the money to join a paid group or community.”

I get this. I totally do. I was there for a very long time. But then I realized that relationships are the key to success in life. They really are. So, my question is, “What can you do to scrape together a little bit of money to engage in a community of high achievers?” If you need to eat out a couple of times less per month or cancel a subscription to something, it’s worth it.

What can you sell? What freelance work could you do? Do whatever it takes because those paid communities are high leverage—which means if you engage in those groups and use the knowledge correctly, you will get a far bigger return on your investment.

With that, of course, it’s a great time for me to mention the Daily Writer Club, which is only $47/month. You can find a link in the show notes!

Daily Question: Do you believe in yourself and your goals enough to invest money into your growth?