I hope that everyone is having a good day and doing something that they enjoy. I, on the other hand, just finished an eight-hour re-certification class for my pest control licenses. While our jobs mandate that we must attend continuing education classes on a regular basis (to keep our license), the benefit and knowledge that we gain from these classes is often suspect.
While there is a tremendous amount of knowledge required to be an effective pest control professional, and I could attend classes from now until the end of time and still never learn everything there is to know about the pest control industry. Unfortunately, the fact that there is a lot to learn doesn’t necessarily mean that the classes will be enjoyable.
The instructor for the class I attended, while he is passionate and incredibly knowledgeable about the industry, disappoints when it comes to passing that knowledge on to his students. He has been reading the same PowerPoint presentation slides for the past 15 years and putting students to sleep for an equal length of time. He is outstanding at his job as a pest control pro, but his talents as an instructor leave a lot to be desired.
Learning (and teaching) are an integral part of what we do as business professionals. The eventual success of our business relies on our ability to absorb new and important knowledge and effectively transfer that knowledge to our clients. Each of us knows someone in our industry who knows much more that we do, but can’t seem to get their business going, as they lack the skills necessary to effectively communicate with their clients. They tend to either bore them to sleep or come across as condescending know-it-alls.
Clients don’t want someone to talk down to them as if they were children; they want someone to share knowledge that’s going to help them navigate through their current situation. This is the whole reason they have procured our services. They don’t want a lecture; they simply want relevant information delivered in an effective manner.
When training new home inspectors, I always equate being an inspector to being an actor/entertainer. As inspectors, we are “on stage” when we’re doing our job. The people that put on a good show are the ones that will be successful in this business. The ones that are boring or demeaning to their clients are the ones that will have their shows cancelled long before their first season is over.
The knowledge required to be a professional inspector is quite important, but effective delivery of that information is even more important. Someone could be the smartest inspector that has ever graced the face of the earth, but if they are not effective at communicating information to their clients, they will be a very lonely, educated person with a failing business.
Author and lecturer Werner Erhard said it best: “The essence of communication is intention.” Is it our intention to provide a benefit to our clients, or is it (as my father used to say) to talk just to hear ourselves talk?
Our intention comes through in our conversation. We need to make sure that it’s our best.
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Thanks, Joe
