Monday, May 21, 2012 - 00:54
Invest in You
We are all so busy. You hear it all the time.
“I’m too busy.”
I intensely dislike those words because guess what? We are all too busy! So, in this busy world of ours, how are you getting better at your job, growing professionally? And what do you do with your precious personal time?
Stop making excuses. Invest in yourself.
When I graduated college, these were my written goals:
- Learn how to speak effectively in public
- Study the world’s major religions
- Hike the Grand Canyon
- Skydive
- Understand the stock market
- Get married, buy a house, and have two kids
- Teach (something, anything)
- Get published
How do you invest in growth through your company? Here are some ideas:
- Email a tip of the week to all employees. It can be an interesting story about how the company was formed (the “elevator speech” of the founder), a marketing or sales tip (even those working in accounting or design can benefit from), or an employee fact.
- Develop an in-house office library—equipped with general self-help books, industry resources, sales success—that all employees can access.
- Show and tell. It doesn’t have to be for only kindergarteners. I implemented this at a former company and it was hugely successful. Employees liked the short break from work; the owner loved that everyone walked away feeling inspired.
- Check out local classes. Local libraries, community colleges, and each county’s department of community services often have free or low-cost programs and seminars.
Check back next week to find out how I’ve done on my own goals.