I remember when my youngest son was having problems with first-grade math. His older and wiser third-grade brother came to his rescue and explained the intricacies of fractions (something I was very grateful for since I’d forgotten more than I ever knew, and was busy cooking dinner at the time).The assistance of someone who had “been there” helped my youngest immensely and was a bonding moment the two could look back on in the years to come. This simple interaction of family helpfulness is also a prevalent dynamic in business. Your peers are the big-brothers who have been there, who can offer advice, and who can show you when they did things wrong and when they did things correctly.
One of the best actions a business owner can implement is to meet with their peers on a regular basis. Whether it’s with business owners in your industry or outside of your industry, meeting with a group of 10-12 can be extremely valuable. Here are a few reasons why you might want to consider this for your business:
- The opportunity to learn about best-practices, the latest technology tools, HR changes or the latest lead capture techniques can have a huge impact on the growth of your business.
- You can ask the important questions: How is this working for you? Where did you find that program? Who do you know that can provide (fill in the blank) services for me?
- The chances are highly likely that someone has been in the exact situation you find yourself in now. The benefits are clear. Other business owners can help you grow your business by you simply giving them the time to tell you.
In today’s rapidly changing business world, being status quo isn’t good enough anymore. Your competition will leave you in the dust and you’ll be wondering what happened. You can step out of the box (and your own comfort zone) and share your experiences with others and glean from them information you can take to heart to help grow your business.
If you’d like to learn more about creating your own peer group, check out this website. They’ll help you get started.