Learning Is Not Compulsory…Neither Is Survival

Author:  Valerie Dennis

Learning is not compulsory…neither is survival.   W. Edwards Deming

Every once in a while, if you are open to it, life unexpectedly presents you with opportunities and individuals. I have been blessed with both. Like many, I was laid off and my path for entrepreneurism was hindered last year when my partner backed out, a change in priorities. In reality, it led me to the right path. While in this transition, PeakVizn was formed. What I like about this group, among other things, is the synergy and their capacity for continued learning.

Learning? Who has the time? The challenge for most people is that we know the business world is changing, and it moves at a much faster pace than ever before. This creates new opportunities and challenges.  Mainstream media is often a secondary source for news. Consumer opinion is no longer filtered. If you are participating in social media, the “noise” is enough to make you logoff. How do you keep up?

PeakVizn is a small group of sales and marketing professionals, all of whom I met through networking. As luck would have it, we represent a complement of disciplines, we like each other, respect each other and we share common goals. One of our goals was to learn social media and determine how it will facilitate the job search and our respective jobs.  I benefit from the experience, and learning of others in our group. To put it in sales terms, it saves me time and enhances my knowledge and skills.

You can argue the point that you don’t have time to establish your own PeakVizn, or you can argue the point that you don’t have time for external meetings. I would argue the point that without growth in our respective disciplines, our survival rate diminishes.

Find local networking groups who can provide the relevant training and education. If you went to two events per month—with relevant topics on the agenda—you would likely get what you need. To quantify that, you’ll likely sacrifice 4 hours of work or personal time in a month (allowing for registration, networking and the presentation).

You may also find support in your existing network. Take time to talk to your friends, find the resources they use, share best practices. This doesn’t have to be a formal discussion, it may happen while you’re driving home from work.  Such discussions may trigger additional research and learning but the initial conversation will have been specific and relevant to you.

Bring your learning to work. When I hold team conference calls or meetings, I like to include training, and discussion on work challenges and best practices. You can use this as a forum for applied learning.

Find trusted online communities to assist you. PeakVizn is geared towards helping businesses with real life challenges. Our Mission is to create a learning forum by sharing ideas, asking questions, thinking outside the box, and building collaboration in a community of sales and marketing professionals. And yes, we may one day evolve into something more.

The bold reminder for all of us is that learning is more important than ever. The reality is that we have a lot of competing priorities. The great thing about human nature is that we have a natural instinct towards inquiry and personal growth, and you’ll be energized by what you find—and that energy will take you where you need to be.