February 8th, 2009
by Lorrie Thomas
My “not-so-secret” man crush, Seth Godin, did a great blog post today on the need to continually learn. His post reminded me that it is through commitment to self-education and momentum that we grow and make meaningful marketing contributions. To help kick start your Monday with a healthy dose of motivation, our web marketing advice is:
You are never done learning
and
The three most dangerous words are “I know that”
and
All the education in the world doesn’t matter if you don’t take action
The secret to marketing success will not happen through binge and purge learning. Going to school and getting a piece of paper does not solidify that you are able to APPLY what you know. Actions speak louder than credentials. I liked Seth’s perspective on school’s purpose. I am an educator, I believe in education, but I believe more in ongoing education! We are never done learning. In order to be successful, we have to continually invest in ourselves, read, critically think, apply and improve our skills.
When I teach web marketing classes, I have to change what I teach every time. The rules change every second, the tools evolve and expand, and trends shift patterns. I don’t know everything, but I own that and I read a lot…it is through reading and ongoing education that I am able to teach, help clients, blog and be a better professional…I wish it was because I have a high IQ, but it’s not. It’s because I have passion, purpose and commit to educational power.
It is up to us to read, critically think, test, try, ask for help, take classes, re-learn, build our skills and own that as adults, we learn by DOING.
Subscribe to blogs, read books, take webinars, re-train your brain and PLEASE don’t believe everything you read. Take it all in, THINK about what you learn can/may/wouldn’t apply to your organization then set yourself apart to win with marketing by getting in the game - roll up your sleeves and get your hands dirty.
Marketing requires MONENTUM. Make a commitment to getting smart, accept that what you know now may not work later, read, think then ACT.
I went to grad school with some of the most brilliant classmates who wrote better papers, did more research and had way more brain capacity then I did. What set me apart was I owned what I didn’t know + I took what I learned and put it to work = RESULTS. After act, I monitor, optimize and try again.
Marketing work is never done. Neither is education or self-improvement. Make this your year to implement smart marketing.
Who’s with me????
Webmarketing
(February 8th, 2009 at 6:41 pm)
It was a nice article. We learn everyday and we never stop learning. In web marketing, one should not stop or be contented with what he already knows, instead, you should explore and learn new strategies and techniques i order to keep up with the challenge of your competitors.
Lorrie Thomas
(February 8th, 2009 at 6:47 pm)
agreed and thanks for the comment! yes, education does help keep a leg up on the competition too!!
Emilia Doerr
(February 9th, 2009 at 1:04 pm)
I love it when I am able to teach clients about marketing, but often I learn from them too! That’s what’s most rewarding! I think when people know you are open to new things, they are more likely to share ideas, resources and tools with you! Today a client just shared a great social networking site with me! With the rules changing all the time, it helps to be surrounded by other people who also love to learn!
Keith T.
(February 9th, 2009 at 1:06 pm)
“All the education in the world doesn’t matter if you don’t take action”.
I so agree with that statement. Some people think just taking a class is enough to equate to real life experience without actually having to apply what they learned (trust me, I have some friends that are career students who know EVERYTHING). There was a quote an instructor of mine used to hang from his desk. It said the following:
“I hear and I forget.”
“I see and I remember.”
“I do and I understand.”
Words of wisdom to anyone learning something new. Until you apply your newfound knowledge and skills successfully, you don’t own it…
Amy Dunn
(February 12th, 2009 at 10:59 am)
So true Lorrie! Web marketing is so vast and overwhelming- we have to pace ourselves and really learn and perfect our approach one network at a time! Thanks for sharing.
Pamela Sherman
(February 13th, 2009 at 11:39 am)
Totally agree! In the “active learning” educational companies I worked with we’d say, “READ it, HEAR it, SEE it, DO it, UNDERSTAND IT!”
Lorrie Thomas
(February 13th, 2009 at 11:12 pm)
ooh READ it, HEAR it, SEE it, DO it, UNDERSTAND IT! – LOVE THAT!
Web Marketing Therapy » Blog Archive » Marketing Rx Never Stop Learning
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Sylvia Martini
(January 31st, 2011 at 7:45 pm)
Hi Lorrie,
Absolutely right! Everything is changing, but this topic is timeless.
Learning is the key to survive. You open one door and you see 10 more. If you are curious, you want to know what is behind the other ten doors and so you can expand your knowledge.
By the way: Keith quote
“I hear and I forget.”
“I see and I remember.”
“I do and I understand.”
is written by Confucius, the famous chinese philosopher, 551 – 479 v. Chr.
Lorrie Thomas
(February 4th, 2011 at 11:28 pm)
Thanks Sylvie!!! You are so right – learning is the key to survival…we learn, give, grow and love more that way
I’m off to tweet this!
“I hear and I forget.”
“I see and I remember.”
“I do and I understand.”
is written by Confucius, the famous chinese philosopher, 551 – 479 v. Chr
http://www.twitter.com/webtherapist
Thanks!!
-L