There are easy answers and then the more complete answers. Of course, starting with the headlines is not a bad idea, but at some point one does have to drill down and get into the details, but let’s start at the top.
The only real way to have true knowledge or ability at any endeavor is of course to learn by doing. Without actual experience, one will always have only a superficial understanding or grasp. Yet, experience can be expedited, and also, importantly, one can not have experience in everything. Nobody lives that long!
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So one of your jobs is going to be to decide what you really should know yourself and be an expert at, and what you don’t need to become personally proficient in, but still need to get accomplished. The “who” rather than “how” issue. A very old and generally accepted concept of success is to determine the critical path to achieving what you want to achieve. In other words, what absolutely has to be done to get where you want to go. While there is a formal Critical Path Method, CPM that has many rules and structures, this method is based on a general idea that there is the shortest path from where you are to where you want to be, the end result. We are not going to discuss or get into the official Critical Path Method here (nor anywhere else in this presentation). I simply want to point out that the concept is important, in simple terms, stay focused on and accomplish what you need to do to get from here to there and don’t become distracted with things that are not important in getting you from here to there.
Know where you want to ultimately arrive at is one of the most critical and important steps in the process of success in business. But also realize that this “vision” may, and probably will change over time. But briefly getting back to “how” or “who”. In general, what you want to become expert at yourself will be the things you enjoy naturally as well as the skills and disciplines that most align with what you will need to be expert in when you “have arrived”. When you have arrived at where you want to be.
So maybe you will need a website to get you “from here to there”. Does that mean you should become expert in website development? Probably not! Unless of course your ultimate aim is to become a world-class website developer!
Another way of how to improve your general knowledge Probably the best way to start is to learn from people who have already done what you want to learn. People who are actually experts or accomplished in the endeavor you want to learn about. And while we often hear that we have to “stay focused on one thing”, this is actually impossible at the beginning of any business endeavor. But let me explain what I mean by that, as it is very important to stay focused.
An example: you may be told by some “expert” to “set up an auto responder to stay in touch with leads and clients.” So while you are trying to just become a master of internet marketing, your clearly defined goal. If you have never set up an auto-responder, you are either going to have to learn how to do that, or hire someone to do it. Even if you decide to hire someone, unless you are experienced with hiring people, this will also be something that may seemingly be taking you away from your lazer-focused-core-goal. But is it really? Or is this just part of the process of becoming the master of internet marketing? Or is it just general knowledge in business? So this does bring us back to how to improve your general knowledge of business.
How to improve your general knowledge
A quick list:
- Don’t expect short-cuts; ultimately, while there are better paths and lesser paths, there really are no secret short-cuts. However, it is important not to get side-tracked.
- DO Expect to put in effort; unless you were born rich or win the lottery, you will have to put in effort of some form.
- DO learn from experts; the challenge here is knowing who is actually an expert at teaching you what you want to learn and who is simply a good sales-person. Also, the best expert at doing something may be a terrible teacher on the topic. (a good salesperson who is also a good teacher, can also be an expert)
- DO be very certain of exactly what your end results look like. Be clear before you start. What is the outcome you want?
- DO examine your motivation before setting out on the road to your goal. As has been said, be careful what you wish for. But also be careful about why you want what you think you want.
If you want to learn more about how to improve your general knowledge of business and as well as achieving your specific goals, then contact Prosperity Consulting here.
