We have a couple of core values at CW IT Support that aligns with the phrase, “If you aren’t growing, you are dying.” One is Constant and Never-Ending Improvement and Development (sharpening the saw, so to speak). The other is Growth and Profitability for the sake of our clients, our team, our community, and the world.
As I’ve been spending a lot of time recruiting and working to build out our team, I’ve given a lot of consideration to our core values and what I believe around “growth.”
Growth is a mindset.
I believe that it is crucial to constantly be looking for ways to improve a process, skill set, attitude, mentality, finances, relationships, and any area of life or business. I never want to be stagnant. As Tony Robbins puts it, “Progress equals Happiness,” and for me, growth leads to progress which leads to happiness. Both personally and professionally, remaining the same today as I was yesterday isn’t an option. I go to conferences, attend events, read books, listen to audiobooks, work with a business coach, use personal trainers for the gym, and see a therapist. I know that if I get the help of other experts, I will get better and improve my overall quality of life.
In terms of business, IT is an ever-changing field. Specifically, cyber security is evolving at a rapid pace. It is challenging as a business owner to keep up with all the changes, keep clients safe, learn what we need to know, and evolve just as fast (if not faster) than the hackers looking to destroy the businesses we serve and protect.
Can you imagine what would happen if we didn’t focus on growth, learning, and development? I can tell you – it wouldn’t be pretty. We would get left behind by competitors, outwitted by criminals, and do our clients a significant disservice. Instead, we MUST focus on training, learning, and growing.
A big piece of this is hiring people who want to grow and learn. We have had team members who were comfortable with where they were. They wanted to earn more money each year, but they didn’t want to do the required work to stay relevant. It’s important as a team member to grow and develop so you can add more value to your organization. Thus, becoming more valuable and receiving more value for your efforts!
With the right mindset around growth and dedicated time allotted to having team members train and grow, one can avoid the pitfalls of stagnation. I’ve found it difficult historically to carve out time in the workday for training and development. This must change if we want to get growth out of our team.
If you manage a team of people, I’d like to pose a question: How do you ensure that your team is growing and learning to keep up with the fast-paced changes of today’s world? What systems do you have in place to ensure learning and growth happens?
How are you committing to improving your people regularly? I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.
