Hi !

I hope you had a good weekend and are staying safe, no matter where you are.

This week's email is inspired by James Clear's newsletter last Thursday.

Almost anything in life can be learned faster. Most people learn passively. They wait for insights to come to them.

But you can speed things up by actively searching for useful ideas. One strategy is to ask the top people what they do. Make their best practices your baseline.

This just reminded me of a lot of instances in my life in which talking to people, especially those who are much more knowledgeable or successful in a particular area, have helped me to learn about something in a much better and faster way.

Connecting with experienced trainers and coaches in the industry.

I've been spending sooooo long considering making my coaching or training business a legit thing. So far I've been doing things on a whim, experimenting with a lot of things (my classes, my workshops), and seeing what works and what does not work.

But I realized that it would be much more useful (for me and for the people I work with) if I had more structure into what I do.

So I decided to talk to people.

I signed up for trainers' workshops and certification to gain insights and best practices from accomplished professional trainers. I asked professional coaches out on virtual coffee chats to learn from their experiences. I even consulted friends who are working in graphic design and branding to get their input on how to properly brand myself as a coach.

This definitely beats reading up on various articles and websites and trying to make sense of everything on my own! It helps me to see things from a different perspective, I get to see what is more important for me to focus on first. I can also somehow see things a little clearer and have a better sense of how to structure things moving forward.

So, how can this work out for you?

Don't be afraid to reach out to people. Depending on what you are trying to learn about, find people in your networks (or even those outside your networks) who are knowledgeable and good in those areas.

Thinking about starting a business? Talk to a successful business(wo)man or entrepreneur!

Thinking about jumping careers into a different industry? Talk to a professional in both industries - the one you are currently in and the one you are jumping into!

Thinking about pursuing your studies? Talk to alumni or students from the specific programs or universities that you are interested in.

When you are talking to people, you get to learn things that may not be available on the internet or in books. It does not necessarily mean that you have to follow what they do 100%, considering how some of their practices may not be suitable for you for whatever reasons, but the insights that you get from them will be much more beneficial than spending the time (and money) to read tens or hundreds of articles or books on the same topic.

That actual personal connection that you made can also be very useful, not only to help you in making that decision but potentially in the future as well.

p/s - if you are a university student and/or fresh graduate, I highly recommend joining Koh Mui Han's FREE Primed for Success club. They meet weekly on Friday nights and you will get paired with industry professionals, where you will get the opportunity to ask any and all questions and advice. Where else would you be able to get free (and weekly!) access to professionals and learn directly from their mentoring? Connect with Mui Han on LinkedIn and check his posts for the registration link!

A question for you.

What is one thing that you've wanted to know more about this week, and who can you talk to to learn more about it?

Until I see you again in two weeks' time - stay safe, stay awesome, and take care!

Love,

Nazu xx