Are You Willing?

We can all step up to the occasion and do something positive if we have to. Anyone can get lucky one time or another. The question becomes, are you willing to apply yourself to your endeavors? Faced with being put on the spot most people can Buffalo their way through most things, even with not knowing all the facts that are pertinent to the subject. Therefore, the question becomes, “Are you willing to do what it takes to become good at your craft?”

Everyone knows some things, no one knows everything. You have to figure out what you already know and what you are willing to learn? If you want to know about something, reading a book is a good start. If you wish to know some more about anything, you take a class. Taking a class provides you with somebody who you can interact with and ask questions. This is also a good step. Unfortunately, it doesn’t do much to really teach you.

If you genuinely want to learn about something, you need to teach what you know on the subject. If you’re thinking, “I can’t do that, I don’t know that much.” In my answer to that is both yes and no. Yes, you don’t know as much as you’re going to have to you teach the class. And no, you know more than the people you are teaching. Remember, you are not trying to make them gurus of the subject. You are only trying to teach them what you know.

I’m sure your next question is, and please correct me if I’m wrong, “How are people who do not know as much as I do, going to teach me more than I already know about the subject matter?” This is a very fair question. And probably because I have done this, the most straightforward question for me to answer.

You are teaching people who do not know as much as you do, which means you are helping them by teaching them what you know. The class, in turn, helps you because they will ask you questions you never thought to ask, yourself. You may feel that this puts you on the spot. And it might. Just thank the person who asks the question and let them know you’d prefer to research the right answer and bring it back to them. Explain that it is better than just giving something made up off the top of your head. The class will respect you for that.

When you’re given a question that you do not know the answer to, make sure it is written down. Bring it back to the next class. And explain it not only to that person but to the entire group, because other people will want to know the answer. The more you do this, the larger your reputation for understanding and sharing the truth will become. Also, the more you do this, the more you will learn. You must, because you have a whole class counting on you to do so.

The only question, “Are you willing to put this much work into knowing more?”

Thank you for being with me today. I hope to be with you again tom

Author: Mike Balof

A retired Air Force Master Sergeant, Mike used to lay in bed at night and worry about what would happen if his plant closed or found himself without a job. One day his plant closed. Rather than panic and hysteria (OK, maybe a little) Mike found himself carried away on the adventure of his life. Mike started with the best job he ever had working at Home Depot. He spent 8 years working with job seekers at a local workforce center, helping them to find employment. He then started his own company developing courses, writing books and urging others to follow their own paths into the future. Mike holds a Master of Arts in Adult Education and Training and a Bachelor of Business Management, earned through the University of Phoenix and an AAS degree in Electronics Systems Technology from the Community College of the Air Force. Mike is a member of the Delta Mu Delta Business Honor Society. View all posts by Mike Balof