I want to know what you do. I’m going to share what I do.
You know, some professions have requirements for continuous education from their associations, the law, or even both. Therefore, whether you work as an educator, an accountant, an attorney, a financial planner, or another profession that requires continuing education, you must return for CEs. There are just a few courses and activities that qualify for CEs. However, there isn’t really anything expected of you as a business owner, franchise owner, or executive in the industry as things stand right now. If you’re a founder of an emerging brand, a broker consultant, or perhaps even a consultant, there isn’t really any formal requirement for education or that you have deep learning.
It is very, very important because business and markets move at the speed of light, and if you’re not keeping up with improvement and personal growth, well, if you own a business or run your broker’s business or sales territory like a business, then if you’re not growing, I can almost guarantee that your business isn’t growing either if you look at your performance. Consequently, it’s crucial to keep learning things that will help you advance your knowledge, stay current with markets, and become a better expert in this field.
I am going to share what I do and what I have learned over the years in the hopes that it will truly help you start focusing on improving yourself and developing professionally so that your business thrives. One of the big advantages of this is that most of what I’m about to discuss doesn’t require much, if any, financial investment. As a result, I am going to give you a variety of actions to take and methods to use, some of which will cost money (some of which I will pay tens of thousands of dollars to do), while others—honestly—are free.
I never want to hear somebody say, “Well, I can’t do that because I don’t have any money, or I can’t do that because I’m not having a good year, or my business isn’t doing well enough for me to be personally developing and personally growing and training myself up, because a lot of these things are available for free,” especially with the technology that has really emerged over the last couple of years with Zoom and many things that have been brought online.
Therefore, let’s begin. Which one comes first? Being a reader is the simplest. Many different expressions, such as leaders or readers, or leaders or readers, learners are readers, but rea, have come up for me. I attempt to read at least 15 novels a year as a goal. Normally, I always have two books going at once. One that is more business-oriented, one that emphasizes personal development, or even one that is faith-based and faith-oriented. 15 books a year might not seem like much to you. I’m not listening to them; I’m reading instead. I’m genuinely reading the books and making notes and underlining important passages. Since I’ve started doing this for a few years, I read at least one book a month, almost every year. Therefore, read; it’s affordable. The majority of books sold today cost less than $15, so your annual investment would be between $150 and $200.
Another one I completed in the past two years really, really accelerated my pace on this. You name the subject, and there are podcasts or downloads or training and lessons available. This also includes listening to podcasts, downloading recordings from Spotify, and other types of recordings. I have witnessed events that lasted anywhere between a few minutes and several hours. Once more, having a Spotify service does not cost a lot of money.
And, podcasts and other audio recordings are excellent ways for you to read, learn, and keep learning while doing so quickly and frequently. One of the things I started doing was listening to music on my phone while I was doing cardio. If I was at the gym and had a cardio day, I always had my headphones with me. I’ve been doing it for maybe three or four years now, and it’s big. I always listen to stuff for an additional 45 minutes to an hour, four, five, or six times a week. Every day, I simply increase the diversity and quantity of my learning.
I thus urge you to think about using a service like Spotify or another one that allows you to simply download podcasts and start to actually boost the quantity of the things you do. I do the same thing when I go for walks; sometimes I even go for a walk at lunch. I’ll put in my earplugs once more and continue listening to the download.
Another thing is the abundance of freebies available online. Even if you might not require the Spotify service, a lot of things these days are available online. Consider searching for information on various topics on Google that you can either read online for free or that is in the form of articles. There are numerous items that serve as the start of a click funnel. They are, however, free webinars.
Again, the training I’ve seen has ranged in length from 10, 15, to 40, or even 50 minutes. You are not required to purchase anything at the end of the queue. These are services that are provided without charge. For instance, I have masterclass training in the franchising industry. Back on the scroll, I’m sharing with you the details of the masterclass, which lasted for roughly 45 minutes. And the information is excellent. The free training is excellent.
You can purchase online training as well. It might be a component of someone’s marketing campaign that is online or through a click funnel. It’s worthwhile to invest in proper training; you can spend hundreds or even thousands of dollars on it, but it only requires a little sum to help you develop personally and help your company expand.
Thus, reading, listening to podcasts or other downloads, and internet resources that you may access for free or at a cost have all been discussed. I’d add another thing I frequently do, which is pay for events. I’ll be attending a Leadership Summit simulcast this week, which will have some of the top leadership presenters, lecturers, and trainers I’ve ever had access to, whether they are again online through Zoom webinars, meetings, or actual events.
Additionally, the early bird discount was $175 for two full training days. I also get to see the simulcast site, which will probably have approximately 100 people there. I’ll be able to network and it will be a tangible event once again, but for a very small fee, I’ll have access to world-class trainers and speakers.
Therefore, take into account paying for nearby activities that you may attend, invest a little time and money in, and benefit from in terms of personal growth. Some of the major ones will be similar to the IFA again in our industry; I believe the IFA offers online training courses. Every hour of the three or four days of the IFA in New York City, there are seminars happening, and they are usually free. Of course, you have to go there, but the seminars’ content, speakers, and other elements are all free.
Another element in the franchise sector is the broker conferences, for company conferences or occasionally perhaps a franchisor’s annual conference, to which you may be invited as a broker or, alternatively, as a franchisee. These items have many diverse purposes for which they were created. They are made to socialize. They are intended to foster relationships, but they are also meant to provide knowledge you can apply to your work or business, as well as training you can use to advance your own professional development. Conventions, perhaps franchise or annual conventions as well, are hence the broken organization.
Finally, the last one, which involves a significant expenditure, I didn’t always do this, but I have in recent years. These are geniuses, too. There are numerous varieties of masterminds. And the word “mastermind” has been employed in a variety of contexts. But I think the two main masterminds in which I’ve participated are quite valuable.
One is that there was a maximum of approximately 30 individuals, making it a much smaller and more intimate group. Additionally, we would hold four or five physical meetings per month in addition to our monthly Zoom meetings. In addition to some of the relationship-building, some of the hot seats, and sharing, they always offered training. But it was simply a fantastic way to obtain a lot of ideas for my company as well as instruction and training.
The other mastermind, a larger group style mastermind that I’ve participated in, still offers excellent networking possibilities as well as chances to create connections. In addition, larger groups allow for lengthier performances by great celebrities, longer training sessions, and longer lectures. Mastermind groups are a terrific way to learn from others, but depending on the type of mastermind group you are in, you may also have presenters, trainers, and speakers who will be of benefit to you.
Let me summarize by saying that the value of lifelong learning and personal development cannot be emphasized enough. I can assure you that if you aren’t expanding, neither your business nor your region will. Therefore, you must continuously concentrate on improving. And what are you doing to improve yourself so that you can advance both personally and professionally and expand your business? Therefore, read it, listen to podcasts and other recordings, download freebies online, pay for training online, pay for in-person events like conferences for the broker or other franchise industries, the IFA, and masterminds. These are the tasks I’m carrying out. What do you have to say? I’d be interested in learning what you’re doing to develop personally and advance your business.
