What You’re Taught In School Isn’t Everything. Here’s 10 Things You Can Only Learn Outside Business School.
You’ve just graduated from business school and you’re now heading for the University of life. It’s an exciting time. Does sitting in a lecture hall for hours on end really prepare you for life in the real world?
Experience can be the best teacher of all. So, before you set off on your new adventure, we’re going to look at ten things which will help your business grow but aren’t taught in school.
1. Make the Most of What You’ve Got
Launching a new business venture can mean you have to make things up as you go along. All those things they taught you in school from funding to hiring just don’t seem to match the reality you’re facing. You have next to no resources for a start.
Some of the most successful business started without a plan. What you need to do is make the most of what you have available. This website has a host of tips to help you do just that.
2. Use Your Imagination
You have a vision, so focus on it and imagine you are already a part of that future. Many successful athletes use this technique in their training. The corporate world could learn from them.
If your ambition is to open a business then imagine that you’re already doing it. You’ll find that this will attract people and opportunities to help you meet your goals.
You can make things happen by imagining what it would be like to have achieved your objectives.
3. Digital Marketing
It’s amazing how out of date education in marketing can be. Information technology is changing so rapidly that business schools find it hard to keep up.
It’s essential that you embrace current trends, and understand how digital marketing works right now. This will help advertise your business with maximum exposure.
Business school may have armed you with principles which will always be relevant. However, you need modern marketing armor. That means understanding search engine optimization, YouTube subscription, and email marketing.
4. Look After Yourself
Allowing yourself to fail without beating yourself about it is one of the best business skills you can learn. If you’re kind to yourself you’ll be able to recover from setbacks far more quickly. Fear will not be able to stop you.
Practicing mindfulness is going to help. Looking and feeling busy does not always bring with it the best ideas. Taking time out and listening to the world around us can lead to a fresh and positive perspective.
5. Taking Risks
Business schools tend to err on the side of caution. We’re taught to embrace rules. But this is the exact opposite of what it takes to run a business. You’re likely to fail regularly but this is all part of learning your trade.
We learn from mistakes. Don’t be afraid to overcome the challenges you come across. You may just need to move forward but in an unconventional direction.
6. Trust Your Instincts and Think Positive
The best way to succeed is to follow what your heart desires. It’s a mistake to allow your ego or what you have in your wallet to get in the way of achieving your goals. It’s not necessary to prove your worth to other people. You are your own person.
Positive thoughts will bring about positive results. If you concentrate too much on a part of a business that isn’t working well, you’ll start to see negatives wherever you look. By all means, take action, but move on and you’ll get more positive results.
7. Let’s Get Creative
It’s a tough subject to teach. How do you show someone how to find a unique solution to a customer service issue or come up with an awesome business idea?
Creativity means thinking outside of the box and beyond the rules that they teach you in school. An ideal solution may not be the most obvious one.
Inspiration can come for experimenting and learning from our mistakes. That experience really only comes on the job.
8. Appreciate What You Have and Be Patient
Appreciating what you have will mean you will gain more. It’s also going to make you feel happier. When you appreciate what’s around you, new opportunities will come your way.
If you take knee jerk reactions out of fear or impatience then the results are unlikely to be the best. It’s wise to take a breath, and be patient whilst at the same time trusting your instincts.
9. Setting Realistic Goals
A lot of importance is placed on planning and strategy at business school. That’s important but what’s also needed is setting goals and looking at things from different perspectives.
You may understand what you want to achieve but how to achieve it is much more difficult. Making goals means you can set out the path ahead. This makes it easier to keep track of who is accountable for what.
You need to be sure that your team buys into these goals so that they are motivated and will make the right impact.
10. The Planning That Isn’t Taught in School
Having a plan is vital but overplanning things can be dangerous for your business. You need to get the balance right. This is especially important when you’re trying to make adjustments on how your customer buys your service or product.
Business schools may treat every business start-up with a similar set of planning tips. The reality is that you will need to adapt your plan as you test your product on the open market.
The emphasis should be on making your idea a reality and testing for success. It’s impossible and a waste of time to think that you can plan every single part of your business in advance.
The Experience of Life
The real world can add to the foundations that are taught in school. Being kind to yourself, trusting your instincts, and setting yourself goals are things that often best learned on the job.
Check us out here for more tips about ways we can help you to start a business and make it grow.