Why Experts Take Classes in Expertness

This week Brent and I are spending three days at a course in Calgary learning about marketing.

Folks tend to think of me as a marketing expert, and I do have a pretty decent amount of experience in the field. There’s a couple people who were wondering why I’m taking three days away from work to learn about a topic I already know quite a lot about. I’ve given workshops, worked for agencies, contributed to books (and I’m looking forward to getting my copy of Investing in Condominiums by Bryan Persaud where I wrote a side-bar on marketing).

First, I’m here because Brent wanted to take a course on marketing and I think that Hobbs/Herder does a better job than most of covering the basics of real estate marketing. I came along to help Brent get the most out of the program and see how the marketing program I’ve created lines up with industry best practices and how we can translate that into our goal of being Edmonton’s premier Multi-Family REALTORS®.

Second, listing to people talk is a great way to trigger a brain dump on a topic. There’s dozens of ideas and projects I’ve had, explored and forgotten. Having someone go through a bunch of basics is a great way to get your mind moving. A trigger list was one of my favorite part of the Getting Things Done system.

Third, this triggers a lot of new ideas. Sitting through an end-to-end program on business marketing is a great way to make you think about your business model, business plan and exactly how you’re moving your business forwards. I always have my computer and my notebook handy because there’s always a stream of new ideas.

Fourth, I make sure there’s time for followup. I’ve blocked out some time when I get back to touch base with the people I’ve met, review and sort the ideas I’ve had and prioritize future projects.

The way to become an expert is to continually submerse yourself in the topic. Listen, read, learn, speak, discuss and teach.