BACK TO SCHOOL… for business sake!

Getting ready to get the kids back on the bus? How about a little learning for yourself?  

Architects and social workers, engineers and attorneys, dentists, hygienists, doctors and nurses, CPAs and Financial Planners all are required to take continuing education. Minnesota’s CPAs have to amass 120 hours every three years. Minnesota attorneys need 45 hours over a 3-year period.

Originally, the legislature established requirements for professional education to insure that technical learning was always current. Today, learning opportunities are broader, at least in part with recognition that every professional is both a skilled expert and a business person. 

CPAs can get eight hours of credit on October 27 for a course many of their clients may be clamoring for: The Shift from Hourly Billing to Value Pricing. Attorneys know that business doesn’t always come by answering the phone (or worse, waiting for it to ring) and the Hennepin County Bar is ready to help trial attorneys learn a better approach at their event on September 13th. Minnesota dental teams can get a big boost in their future business (plus 8 credits) by attending Minnesota’s 16th Annual Practice Management Symposium, a day long session focused on Looking Forward: You Can't Change the Past, But You Can Influence the Future. 

Even for those of us who don’t have the pressure of annual credits looming over our heads, the business world we live in has moved from nice-to-have training programs (usually cut first when economic times got tough) to learning organizations, where everyone is strongly encouraged to broaden their abilities, skills and knowledge. 

If we want to grow, we’ve got to learn. For those of us who are business owners or leaders, we’ve got to create that learning culture, offer resources that tie learning to our business strategy and measure what’s working. There’s more ways than we could have imagined even ten years ago---self-study, webinars, teleseminars, forums, blogs, or live seminars. Examples of great resources: The Small Business Toolbox self study programs for small businesses and professional firms; Business Expert Webinars – a broad variety of meaty one hour sessions (save $20 by using promo code 4c79db40); workshops developed by local business groups such as the Minnesota Interactive Marketing Association.

The key is, get on the learning bus. Give yourself--- and those you work with --- a real chance to grow. And, grow the business because of it.