A Self-Improvement Guide: 5 Ways Business Owners Can Develop Their Skills

Self-improvement is vital to business success. It lets business owners spot gaps to fill, leverage technology, understand the market, craft effective strategies, and take point in operations. It also helps business owners adopt a more positive mindset and improve their mental makeup and people skills.

Suffice to say, business owners must endeavor to improve themselves. They can do that by taking note of the self-improvement guide below.

1. Consulting with a coach

This need for self-improvement has led to an increase in demand for business coaches, whose personalized advice can help business owners and professionals grow.

Specifically, they can provide guidance that will lead to self-awareness, increase productivity, and enhance confidence—but without the need to commit long hours. It’s a good thing that there are lots of great business coaches out there, including Small Business Coach Alan Melton, entrepreneurs Barry Moltz and Erin Henry, and Action Coach Brad Sugars.

2. Going back to school

This option allows business owners to get formal education in aspects they need to improve in, like financial literacy or management. And they can get that in different ways, whether through night school, traditional schooling, or online courses. Among these choices, though, taking online courses is gaining the most traction, with its enrolment numbers surpassing that of traditional university enrollment. That’s because online classes offer great value, scheduling flexibility, and cheaper rates.

The ability to study at one’s own pace is particularly appealing to business owners, who can add to their business acumen by taking a business course. Those who choose to take an online business degree have the advantage of both choosing their schedule and doing all their work online. Alongside learning the core fundamentals of business, these online courses can also explore specialist subjects like financial accounting, economics, business law, and statistics. Through this option, business owners get to improve in a formal setting, but do it on their own time and without attending physical classes.

3. Taking short courses or self-studying

Business owners not ready to pursue an actual degree can opt for shorter courses. The Small Business Administration (SBA), for instance, offers online courses on a variety of subjects via the SBA Learning Center. An alternative would be to explore SBA’s Tools page, which is filled with a variety of resources that business owners can peruse to learn things related to running a business.

Other options include Microsoft Office Training, which offers comprehensive tutorials on using Microsoft Office. Another option is My Own Business’ 16-session course that covers business plan creation, risk mitigation, and overcoming common problems. Business owners can also attend the Small Business Coach business webinar series comprised of one-hour sessions that touch on a wide variety of business topics, including growing a business and crafting effective marketing campaigns.

4. Learning from the staff

Team members such as accountants and marketing strategists are hired because they have expertise in a particular aspect of business, and these areas might not be the business owner’s strengths. These experts are an excellent source of information on things related to the business area they are in.

So, working closely with them can double as a learning opportunity. Business leaders should ask the team relevant questions, as their insights can expand management’s understanding of the different aspects of the business and learn in the process.

5. Applying what has been learned

For all the knowledge gained from coaching, studying online, attending webinars, and asking questions, the process of learning won’t be complete without practical application. In other words, business owners need to find opportunities to put theory into practice.

For instance, one who takes a short course on public speaking needs to find opportunities to speak in public—but with very low stakes involved, as in, say, a speaking engagement in a local school or a team building pep talk. Success in these applications will determine whether something was, indeed, learned or not.

Indeed, learning opportunities are there for the taking. All that is left now is for business owners to realize the importance of self-improvement, be willing to learn and evolve, and then take advantage of these great opportunities.

Written by Kayla Hinton for smallbusinesscoach.org