Does the economic climate have you feeling threatened? With all of the changes brought on by the arrival of the information age, do you feel left behind? Most of us do feel uneasy and a little behind the eight ball. Sometimes it seems we have to run as hard as we can just to stay in one place! Everything is changing so fast that what we learned yesterday could very well be outdated tomorrow.



So how do we keep our competitive edge in our business?

The fundamental strategy of a high achiever is their focus on being learning-based. Being a learning-based person means that you take education, training, and self-development as the foundational piece of your plan to achieve your goals.

Maybe learning is key?

No matter what we do, no matter where we go, owner or employee, now more than ever before, we must stay sharp…continue to study, learn and remain curious. Everyone in our business, everyone, every day will stay engaged when we emphasize and encourage learning. Learning is the key to innovative, creative, out of the box solutions. It is not enough for us as leaders to stay abreast of our industry, attend training programs or read books. We need all of our employees playing at their very best to stay in the game of business.

The irony is that the issues that are creating so much potential for anxiety like the economy, global business, changing cultures and technology are potentially the learning opportunities that can potentially propel you forward.

Consider the unprecedented wealth of information available on the Internet, in seminars, webinars and books. When I feel threatened by the economic uncertainty and by all of the new knowledge and capability that's emerging, I just make a point to learn something new: e-commerce, business principles, or how my industry is adapting to the marketplace. Learning anything that will keep me thinking ahead and tweaking my existing business is so very gratifying.

How do you maximize what you are learning? Focus on the top 5 areas:

People - training, coaching, developing, and managing effectively.

Money - how to project, manage, budget and leverage.

Business Development – web 2.0, promotions, retaining and recapturing customers etc.

Operations - process, systems, functionality of the business.

Personal growth - learning about yourself will make you better at all of the above.

When I have that insight or acquire that new understanding or capability I feel stronger, I feel resourceful, like I gained a little ground in the marketplace. Maybe today I put the heat on somebody else? My competitive advantage…me.

Give it a go, and then share what you learned with your employees. The only thing better than knowing that you just got a little smarter is knowing that your business did too. Learning is everything.

Alicia Fruin

Does the economic climate have you feeling threatened? With all of the changes brought on by the arrival of the information age, do you feel left behind? Most of us do feel uneasy and a little behind the eight ball. Sometimes it seems we have to run as hard as we can just to stay in one place! Everything is changing so fast that what we learned yesterday could very well be outdated tomorrow.

So how do we keep our competitive edge in our business?

The fundamental strategy of a high achiever is their focus on being learning-based. Being a learning-based person means that you take education, training, and self-development as the foundational piece of your plan to achieve your goals.

Maybe learning is key?

No matter what we do, no matter where we go, owner or employee, now more than ever before, we must stay sharp…continue to study, learn and remain curious. Everyone in our business, everyone, every day will stay engaged when we emphasize and encourage learning. Learning is the key to innovative, creative, out of the box solutions. It is not enough for us as leaders to stay abreast of our industry, attend training programs or read books. We need all of our employees playing at their very best to stay in the game of business.

The irony is that the issues that are creating so much potential for anxiety like the economy, global business, changing cultures and technology are potentially the learning opportunities that can potentially propel you forward.

Consider the unprecedented wealth of information available on the Internet, in seminars, webinars and books. When I feel threatened by the economic uncertainty and by all of the new knowledge and capability that's emerging, I just make a point to learn something new: e-commerce, business principles, or how my industry is adapting to the marketplace. Learning anything that will keep me thinking ahead and tweaking my existing business is so very gratifying.

How do you maximize what you are learning? Focus on the top 5 areas:

People - training, coaching, developing, and managing effectively.

Money - how to project, manage, budget and leverage.

Business Development – web 2.0, promotions, retaining and recapturing customers etc.

Operations - process, systems, functionality of the business.

Personal growth - learning about yourself will make you better at all of the above.

When I have that insight or acquire that new understanding or capability I feel stronger, I feel resourceful, like I gained a little ground in the marketplace. Maybe today I put the heat on somebody else? My competitive advantage…me.

Give it a go, and then share what you learned with your employees. The only thing better than knowing that you just got a little smarter is knowing that your business did too. Learning is everything.

Alicia Fruin

As owner of Profit Consulting Co., Alicia has become a leader in the field of coaching, consulting and training for small business. She has designed more than 100 custom training programs for hundreds of business owners in a variety of industries across the country. In addition, Alicia has coached managers, presidents and sales professionals on how to build a business truly worth having!