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Books: A Lifelong Learning Key

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Lifelong learning is a journey. It is not a destination, and getting there is not simply half the fun. It’s all of the fun when you are accompanied by the greatest minds of all time. The incredible voyage, that is lifelong learning is more enjoyable, when the greatest books ever penned are your sails.

Have you ever visited your local public library or a bookstore, and stood there for a moment, and looked in awe at the immense treasure of information surrounding you? While every book is not a classic, or a fountain of timeless wisdom of the ages, each volume represents a writer’s gift of creation. By carefully selecting which books to purchase or borrow, you can share in the knowledge that has passed from generation to generation.

While business people will often find their selections in the business book section, there is much wisdom to be discovered elsewhere as well. Along with the many fine writings on business, it is well worth a business person’s time to rediscover the immortal classics of literature.

From an early age, we studied great books of literature. Often, William Shakespeare, Mark Twain, Charles Dickens, and Jane Austen were found to be boring and lacking relevance. While those classics and others were seen as uninteresting at an earlier time in your life, it’s time to pick them up once again. A very important factor to notice about great literature, is its ability to affect you in different ways, at various points in your life. What may have seemed boring and of little benefit at one stage in life, may turn out to be one of life’s most important lessons at another age and time.

The lessons from characters ranging from Hamlet to Huckleberry Finn to Elizabeth Bennett are vital to our lives today. While the settings may change, the nature of people does not. Knowing about people, and their myriad of actions and motives, is a powerful gift for any business owner or manager. At the same time, great literature is a pleasure to read and enjoy. Becky Sharp is as captivating today as she was in Victorian England; and Robinson Crusoe and Friday provide valuable information on resourcefulness and creativity.

Reading the great books not only teaches life lessons, but also improves your personal writing and communications style. To fashion prose like F. Scott Fitzgerald or economize on words like Ernest Hemingway is the mark of a fine writer. Learning to think, and to create letters and articles in a strong prose style, sets one apart from the crowd. Good writing cries out to be read and then read and enjoyed again. Following the example of the best writers of all time will enhance your own writing skills.

Enjoying the great works of literature is one of the most enjoyable voyages upon which you will ever embark. It is lifelong learning at its most pleasurable.

Select a volume of classic literature today

Wayne Hurlbert writes about business blogs, SEO, marketing, and public relations on Blog Business World. Wayne also hosts the internet radio show Blog Business Success.

Lifelong Learning: Stop The Cliches

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How many times have you heard someone say they are too old to learn something new?

It’s often expressed as "You can’t teach an old dog new tricks" or a similar cliche that has little basis in reality. In fact, such falsehoods do less to help people, and do much to hinder them. Instead of encouragement, age is treated as an impediment to learning. I say it’s about time to stop the cliches.

Lifelong learning is a way of life for everyone, whether they are aware of it happening or not. People learn new skills and ideas all of their lives. That old dog is always learning some new and often very exciting tricks, whether or not the dog even realizes the change. That alteration in perception often goes unnoticed, and therefore is very often disregarded. The fact remains, however, there are indeed new tricks to be learned.

It’s an established truism of life that everyone will not only have more than one employer during their working life, but will also be part of more than one career. Those careers may be so different from one another, that the person will have to be almost entirely retrained every time, to make the changes effectively. The need for lifelong learning becomes apparent when the number of career changes is considered as part of the equation.

Not only are more people changing careers than ever before, university and community colleges are experiencing explosions in continuing education enrollments. Not only are the students taking career related courses, but many are choosing topics for enriching the enjoyment of various crafts, activities and hobbies. Learning some new techniques and skills for lifestyle enhancement and personal growth are very much a part of the lifelong learning experience.

In the formal academic world, students are no longer the traditional recent high school graduates. It’s not uncommon to see students old enough to be the parents and the grandparents of the stereotypical student. Formal higher education has lost the age barriers entirely. University and community college classes now have students of all ages. Retraining for new careers is part of the reason, but personal interest is very much part of the educational experience as well.

Don’t look now, but the old dog is learning some brand new tricks and even some exciting and unique twists on them as well. That’s one cliche to be buried along with the bone. In its place, we’ll use a better cliche: "You learn something new every day."

Now that’s cause to celebrate lifelong learning!

Postcript by Rosa: Our Guest Author today is Wayne Hurlbert, author of Blog Business World. Wayne is mentor extraordinaire for the successful entrepreneur who blogs in business, marketing, public relations, and search engine optimization. You will always find your link to Wayne in the right column Ho‘ohana Online Community Listing.

Wayne Hurlbert on Reinvention

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Welcome to our week of Reinvention for Business—Day 6! The Ho‘ohana Online Community has graciously agreed to some hale-sitting in Talking Story this week for me, and they are sharing their thoughts with you on our March Ho‘ohana, a challenge for us all to reinvent ourselves in business.

Our Guest Author today is Wayne Hurlbert of Blog Business World.

I can’t recall how I first discovered Blog Business World, however I do remember that Wayne’s blog was one of the very first I ever read. No surprise there, for Wayne is SEO King in my eyes, and I have often said here on Talking Story how much I learn from him. “Mentor” is the word that suits Wayne superbly, for he gives away his knowledge so freely within his desire to see the rest of us succeed. I am so pleased to have his expert hand complete our forum this week.

I have some surprises at the bottom of Wayne’s article! But first, let’s learn from Wayne.

Reinvention: Whole Business Marketing.

It’s a common sight in many businesses.

The weekly marketing meeting is attended only by those people directly involved in the narrowest definition of marketing. Usually the Marketing Manager will say a few words, the Sales Managers will add a few more, and a few goals will be set. Little if any consideration is given to the front line people carrying out these wonderful plans.

The inside and outside sales staff are given some orders, and perhaps a pep talk, and little else beyond a brochure. The front desk reception people are given very little except a phone script. The office and clerical staff are usually given nothing at all.

When the sales numbers arrive for the time frame in question, the totals on the page often look very bad in the cold harshness of black and white. The marketing division personnel only know that top management will not be happy with the results. Hasty meetings with sales are called. Little is resolved. The original failed plans receive very cosmetic changes. Rinse and repeat.

If this sounds like your company, then perhaps an entire change in marketing perspective is required. Those shifts in marketing thought should involve everyone in the company. All personnel and staff, from all areas of the business, must be a part of the new holistic theory of marketing. The customers of the company must also become part of the overall marketing process.

The definition of who is responsible for marketing the business must be expanded to include everyone within and outside of the company. That requires a major change in company thinking and attitudes toward marketing.

Getting everyone on board

The first step to reinventing marketing, to include everyone connected to the business, in the overall marketing of the company. While that might appear to be radical thinking for traditional marketers, it’s really more in the line of common sense.

Multiply the overall number of people thinking in terms of marketing, and selling the products and services, and those regular revenue reports will look much more pleasant.

The first step is to develop a company wide policy that everyone within the company is involved in marketing. The senior management has to make product and services marketing a total team effort, and become involved themselves. By setting a strong example, and displaying a full commitment to the effort, other employees will join in as well.

The marketing department will be called upon to involve everyone in the organization. The doors must be opened wide, and ideas should flow both ways. Management staff must recognize that some of the very best ideas will arrive from the hands on personnel on the front lines. Their face to face meetings with customers and clients provide valuable product and market research. This front line intelligence should be put to use, and not ignored.

The customer service staff should be well trained in all aspects of the company’s products and services. Instead of outsourcing customer service, take a closer look at keeping the department in house. While short term savings might appear favourable, the potential sales left on the table far outweigh the few dollars saved on wages.

Customer service representatives must be empowered to solve customer problems. All too often, the role of the staff is to get rid of the customers, and to ignore any complaints. That shortsighted approach is precisely the wrong path to take.

The customer service rep who addresses a customer’s concerns, and resolves the issue beyond the dissatisfied customer’s satisfaction, will have won a customer for life. The lifetime value of the saved customers and their purchases, more than pays for the customer service department.

Along with solving problems, customer service can offer upselling to better and higher priced products. They can provide cross selling opportunities to the customer, in the form of a one stop shopping experience. They can assist a customer make a purchase better suited to their needs, than the original selection.

All of these things maintain the customer base for life. The cost of keeping an existing customer is only a fraction of acquiring new ones. Those savings add up, and the customer list grows ever longer.

The receptionist is often the first contact a customer has with the company. Don’t use the front desk as a place to put the newest employee. Provide that person with full company knowledge so the appropriate assistance can be offered to the potential customers and clients. Proper training for telephone staff is essential, and should be taken very seriously.

Keep your premises clean and inviting, and involve all maintenance and custodial staff in the process. Pleasant surroundings boost sales and customer satisfaction.

Get the customers into the act

Your customers are some of the most powerful marketing people you company has at its disposal. Unfortunately, their support is either neglected or even outright discouraged.

We all know about good old word of mouth advertising. As a handy marketing technique, it’s extremely powerful at increasing sales and brand loyalty. Satisfied customers are your company’s best product and service evangelists. Treat them well, and reward them for their efforts.

Ask your customers for referrals. Provide your sales staff with specific questions to ask for recommendations of friends, family, and business associates. If your now fully trained staff does its job well, sales should increase dramatically.

People tend to believe people they know and trust. If your company has made them happy, they will tell others to support your business. Once again, proper customer service pays off in real dollars for the company bottom line.

Customers represent a gigantic hidden source of product and service ideas. In fact, if they suggest a product or service be added your business product line, the customers are far more likely to buy it. They already have a degree of ownership of the product. Help them to help you succeed.

Conclusion

Marketing is not just the responsibility of the marketing department. It involves everyone connected with your business, whether staff or customers.

Get everyone involved, and watch your sales skyrocket.

—Wayne Hurlbert

Mahalo nui Wayne!

Here are the surprises I promised: Wayne is a blogspot.com hold-out, and so because there is no profile page there that I can find, you’ll have to be a good sleuth like me and learn more about Wayne through his voice: This sampling may surprise you at first!

Wayne’s Derby World. Roller Derby, RollerJam, RollerGames, and Rollergirls.
Codswallop and Flapdoodle. Aliens, Mars, conspiracy theories, and other mysteries, discussed by two friends who have no clue, and spend way too much time in the pub.
Smart Man Online. Wayne!

Do you have questions for Wayne? Would you like to add your voice to his? The comment lines are open, and ready for your thoughts.
— Rosa

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