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Growth Happens Faster With the Right People Around You

Running a business or leading a team can be isolating. You’re making decisions that affect other people’s paychecks, futures, and families, and most of the people around you day to day don’t fully understand the weight of that. It’s hard to get real perspective on your own business when you’re in it every single day, handling whatever is in front of you.

This is one of the reasons RizeX Professional Growth Network exists.

A Community, Not a Networking Group

We intentionally avoid the word “networking” when we talk about RizeX. For a lot of people, that word brings to mind stiff small talk, business cards exchanged and forgotten, and conversations that feel more transactional than genuine. That’s not what we’re building.

RizeX is a professional development and growth community built on real relationships — the kind that support you personally and professionally, not just when it’s convenient. We call it the RizeX Family because that’s genuinely what it becomes for the people who get involved: a group of people invested in your growth, who celebrate your wins, and who will tell you the truth when you need to hear it.

Why Real Conversations Matter

A lot of the most valuable moments in business don’t happen in formal meetings or scheduled calls. They happen in conversations that go beyond “what do you do?” and get into what someone is actually building, what they’re proud of, and what they’re currently working through.

Research from the American Psychological Association shows that people who engage in deeper conversations report greater happiness and stronger social connections. That tracks with what we see in our own community. In a business environment that often moves fast and feels transactional, being genuinely heard stands out. Deeper conversations build trust and often lead to opportunities that never come up in a surface-level exchange.

A few questions that tend to open up better conversations:

  • “What’s the most exciting project you’re working on right now?”
  • “What professional achievement are you most proud of, and what did it teach you?”
  • “What challenges have you run into recently, and how have you handled them?”
  • “Where do you see the biggest opportunities in our industry right now?”

Asking good questions is only part of it. The follow-through matters too — listening without rushing to respond, staying curious, and contributing thoughtfully rather than just waiting for your turn to talk.

As RizeX member Kamden Huntsman, CCUFC — Relationship Development Officer at Westmark Credit Union — shared:

“RizeX provides opportunities to get to know people on a deeper level than any other group I’ve been a part of. I always leave their events with more knowledge and ways to work through the challenges from both work and home life.”

Diversity, Value, and Accountability

Three things tend to determine how much value someone gets out of a community like this: the diversity of the relationships, the value exchanged, and the accountability built in.

Diversity of relationships. Studies have shown that diverse teams and networks tend to be more innovative and better positioned for long-term growth, largely because different industries and backgrounds bring different perspectives to the same problem. At RizeX, we’re intentional about bringing together people from different industries and stages of business for exactly this reason.

Value. The people who get the most out of this community are usually the ones putting the most into it — making introductions, sharing what they know, and showing up to support other members’ events and goals. It tends to be reciprocal over time.

Accountability. A goal or plan is more likely to happen when someone is checking in. Without that, even good plans tend to get pushed aside by whatever is urgent that week. This is one of the pieces our members consistently point to as making the biggest difference in their own growth. As RizeX member Jason Van Sickle — Chiropractor and Owner of Ascend Chiropractic — put it:

“I have spent thousands of dollars in coaching looking for what RizeX offers. This is not your ‘here’s my card’ marketing, so if that’s what you’re looking for, RizeX is not for you. If you’re looking for your board room, an area to connect with CEO-level minds, and just good people, then welcome to RizeX. Truly can’t describe the value you get just being able to associate with the brilliant business minds of Idaho Falls.”

These are the same principles behind everything we do at RizeX, and they’re the foundation for something new we’re introducing this year.

The RizeX Executive Leadership Retreat

For the first time, RizeX is hosting a retreat built specifically for executive leaders and business owners: four days away from day-to-day operations, spent with other leaders who are building at a similar level.

What to expect:

  • 12-Month Vision Reset — Work through your revenue targets, margin targets, and the team structure needed to hit them.
  • Table-Level Hot Seats — Bring a real, unsolved problem to a table of peers who’ve dealt with similar challenges.
  • A 90-Day Execution Plan — Specific, measurable, and dated, not just a general set of goals.
  • Leadership Commitment — Commit to your plan out loud, in front of people who will follow up with you afterward.

This structure is based on what’s already worked inside the RizeX Mastermind, condensed into four focused days. Confidentiality is standard for the room.

Because this is our first retreat, we’re keeping the group small and reviewing applications individually rather than filling seats on a first-come basis. We’re looking for the right mix of executive leaders and business owners who are serious about growth and willing to hold each other accountable after the retreat ends.