“There is a lot of value in gaining an education on someone else’s dollar” – Brian King
When Brian King, a construction industry leader, came into our Charlotte office to record a podcast episode, he said these exact words. And it got me thinking; I need to think of this stage in my career as “College 2.0”.
I remember walking across the stage in 2018 at Western Carolina University thinking that I was done with education. Boy, was I wrong. I’ve come to realize that I love learning and, frankly, that continued learning is necessary to progress in life both personally and professionally. I needed to develop a mindset oriented towards education and personal growth mindset.
Early in my career, I used to look at emails or receive feedback from the leaders of my company and get defensive. I’d think, “why do they want it this way?” I finally realized that they were giving me directions to valuable learning experiences down the road.
Let’s take my first sale as an example.
Former professional golfer and current golf instructor, Julie Cole, was coming into our office the next day to discuss how we could help her grow her brand. I’d met her on Next Door, and I thought I was ready for this meeting, that college and my first few months on the job and college had prepared me for anything she could throw at me—until I spoke with Shane Snively.
I went to Shane Snively (aka The Strategy Addict) as I was preparing for this meeting just to run my ideas by him and get any feedback from him. He spent two hours sharing his knowledge with me on everything from capacity to selling time for money.
Because of those two headache-inducing hours, when I spoke with Julie the next day, I nailed it. Thanks to The Strategy Addict, I made my first sale. I continue to use what I learned that day with almost every prospective client I meet.
I learned. I was gaining an education while making sales. You can’t beat that.
And frankly, I wouldn’t be progressing in my career if it weren’t for these learning opportunities from the leaders around me.
As I’ve shown my eagerness to learn and grow, I’ve been awarded more responsibility within our company—and with even more opportunities to educate myself and take my, and our company’s game, to the next level. A win-win.
Thanks to our incredible and influential clients, I’m continuously learning every day. I get to listen to the perspectives from leaders around the world in many different industries as they discuss the mistakes they’ve made, what they wish they knew earlier in their career, and the steps they’ve taken to be successful. That is priceless.
I am now eager to educate myself.
I’m hungry for it.
I need it to level up in my career and my life.
Future John will thank me for it.