I am an avid learner, and since you’re currently this article on Medium, which is full of riches in terms of knowledge and advice and perspectives, so are you. Learning can feel very good when you feel that you’ve gained something new and fresh that you can add to your life and living, yet it can also be very frustrating at times. I’m a person who hates clutter and disorganization, yet I’m also someone who likes to explore new things and venture into unknown territory. On one hand, that makes me something who is willing to go above and beyond to find good resources and create plans for actually digesting different types of material, on the other hand, it’s difficult to be consistent and actually stick to one thing at a time. I jokingly call this the “bookstore phenomenon”, just like when I go to a Barnes and Noble just to browse the many different pieces of literature around me and I can never actually finish a single book because I always have my attention taken away by another interesting book. I assume that many of you have this same problem.
I spent a lot of time trying to solve this dilemma, and I finally found the solution. I started a small business called FirstFruits Analytics, which works with other small businesses to increase growth in their marketing pipelines through web analytics and content/brand strategy. It’s still in its fledgling stage, but the growth is encouraging. Through this whole process of starting and growing my business and working with various clients, my learning has been supercharged and I’m very excited to see what the future holds. Here are the reasons why starting your own business is the best way to learn (even if you never wanted to be an entrepreneur).
The Obvious Incentive
If you didn’t have that much motivation to put in the work to learn something or create something, adding the prospect of money definitely can boost your motivation. Of course, money won’t come flowing in that quickly given that you are just getting started, but it’s an incredible feeling when that first paycheck or online payment comes, no matter how tiny the amount may be. Also, while you’re working on your business, you’ll learn important skills like money management, negotiation, and overall people skills.
The 80/20 Rule (“Pareto Principle”)
What’s really important to know when it comes to doing client work is that you will most certainly not need to be knowledgeable in the full sphere of whatever field you are in. For example, if you do client work in web development, it’s very unlikely that you’ll need to know every single technology and framework in the world of web development. People usually ask for very specific things. Take a look at most freelance aggregator sites and you’ll see what I mean.
You can take this fact to your advantage. The 80/20 Rule, also known as the “Pareto Principle” states that you can get 80% of the results by focusing on only 20% of the problems. There are simply some matters that come up much more often then others. In fact, more than 80% of the problems that people face can be solved with less than 20% of the actual solutions/remedies.
Although you can technically apply the Pareto principle anytime, working with clients forces you to cut down on what you actually focus on, and that’s ultimately to your benefit.
#startup #learning #self-improvement #business #deep learning
