1. 

A personal board provides both wisdom and support for the attainment of a specific purpose. Their objective is to help you cross the chasm from the known to the unknown.

2. 

Consider the roles each person on your board will play. Consider having an entrepreneur along with a clarifier who asks clear questions, a connector who leads you to other people, a challenger who helps you act boldly, and a wise elder or sage. You want to draw upon the wisdom of people with diverse perspectives who think differently than you do.

3. 

By forming a personal board, you now have the ability to tap into wisdom and experience that you normally would not have access to as well as developing a support network.

4. 

A diverse board of directors can, will and should pose the big, often-difficult questions that need to be asked.

5. 

Often in making big decisions, not enough options are considered. A Personal Board of Directors will help you to see the bigger picture. This is called "intellectual bench strength".

6. 

A personal board will accelerate your learning curve and it will help you take some of the fear out of making difficult decisions.

7. 

Your relationship with your personal board is all about "win-win", so you must be willing to give as much as you receive. Consider ways to add value to their lives and their work.

8. 

Gaining and maintaining a trusted Personal Board of Directors will keep you from the unnecessary and avoidable "cliffs and canyons." However, selecting the right people to sit on your personal board of directors can be fraught with peril. Think through and develop "attribute profiles" for the people you need on your personal board.

9. 

The most effective board will be a group of people who bring a breadth of skills, experience and diversity to your life. Ideally, members of the board should have backgrounds and contacts that differ from--but complement--your background and that of the other directors. As you grow and change, the governing board also will evolve to meet changing needs and circumstances.

10. 

Take your promising ideas to people you trust and let them help you with perspective, talent, money, etc. Welcome prompt observations and detailed evaluations of your plans. You create a personal board for their vision and experience. Your purpose must be to have them help you remove or manage as many unnecessary barriers that exist. In addition to shortening your learning curve, it provides an additional level of accountability.