The most successful people in business believe in lifelong learning. Many of us admire and hope to emulate them and their success. Some are famous and some are everyday businessmen and women. They all understand that “knowing everything” or “I know enough to get by” is a myth and not a smooth path to optimum achievement.

Always be learning leads to always be closing, the famous line by Alec Baldwin in the movie, Glengarry Glen Ross. He goes on to say, “get them to sign on the line which is dotted”. Frankly, that is central to what business is all about. Making sales. Growing your business. Thriving in good times and bad. Providing a roof over your family’s head and food on the table.

We know many of these high-achievers. They are in every industry, in every walk of life. They read everything they can get their hands on. They listen to experts. They are passionate readers. They practice their craft feverishly.

• Jerry Seinfeld writes every single day. He marks each day off the calendar with a big, red ‘X’ when he writes so he can see his string of successes and achievements. He also practices his craft by performing stand-up comedy on a regular basis.
• Walt Disney learned to draw through correspondence school and continued throughout his life to learn new skills.
• Bill Gates reads one book per week and sets 2 weeks aside every year for reading vacations.
• Barack Obama sets aside an hour a day to read.
• Warren Buffett invests 80% of his time into reading and thinking and in his early investing days read 600-1000 pages per day.

Why You Need More than Just Supurb Design Skills

We have said it before, many times — your design talents are an important factor to the success of your kitchen and bath business, and it is clear that you and your team are talented designers. However, growing, thriving, profitable business cannot rely on design talent alone. Business skills are not necessarily natural to designers, but these skills are equally important to the success of the business. And more importantly, business skills can be learned with effort and commitment from you.

Many great leaders and successful business professionals consciously set time aside for themselves throughout their careers. These high-achievers, no matter how busy they are, follow the Five Hour Rule — they set at least an hour a day (or five hours a week) over their entire career for deliberate practice or learning. Continuous learning is a part of how they do business.

There are several reasons why continued learning is a smart idea for you and your staff:

• Learning, growing, and professional development adds value to your current level of knowledge.
• Learning is invigorating, inspirational, and positive (especially if you are in a rut).
• Learning helps you sharpen skills or develop new skills.
• Lifelong learning helps you cultivate the right mindset to run a profitable business.
• Continuous learning can help expand your mindset.
• Learning can help you recognize new opportunities.
• Continuous learning, for your staff, is a motivator — most people value professional development and the ability to learn new skills that will help them do their job better.

During Ten Tuesdays With SEN, speaker “Cutco Katie” complimented SEN’s business education resources by saying “it’s like an MBA for the Kitchen and Bath industry.” And now, we have taken it a step further!

Introducing SEN University! The goal of this new program is to empower the kitchen and bath industry to achieve maximum market potential through business education.

Building a company you are proud of, growing the business, and operating with profitability is hard work and these skills can be learned, especially if they are not natural and instinctive to you.

What Does SEN University Offer Kitchen & Bath Businesses?

SEN University provides business education specifically designed to help SEN members grow and operate a profitable business. This program cultivates business skills in the same way design talent is developed and nurtured.

This is why SEN Design Group has expanded their member education program, distinctively packaged to support the continuous education of your staff within their respective roles. SEN University is a subscription service with two options — a Business/Owner Track and Designer/Sales Track — designed to meet the specific needs of your team members.

BUSINESS/OWNER TRACK

The Business/Owner Track is designed to guide owners to revenue growth, operational excellence, and profitability. The program includes:

90-Minute Live Workshops with a variety of topics including:

• Social Selling: Turning Customers into your Digital Salesforce
• Overhaul your Digital Footprint & Outpace Your Competition
• Winning Team Communication Strategies
• Charged Leadership: Energize Your Reputation, Influence, and Impact

 SEN Exclusive Executive Courses (Choose one course per year with subscription purchase)

• In-Person 3-Day Profit Plan School
• Project Management 2-Day Course

Plus:

• Online Sales Roundtable (2 per year in addition to conferences)
  Interactive discussion of common issues impeding full sales potential, best-practice solutions, and success strategies

Business Owner Education Add-On Option:

• Premier 4-Day Executive Business School

For kitchen and bath business owners who want to make great strides in their growth and progress as a company in 2021, the Premier 4-Day Executive Business School is the foundation of all owner education and is a cornerstone of SEN’s unique education offering.

(Available at 50% savings with purchase of Subscription Package)

SALES/DESIGNER TRACK

The Sales/Designer Track was created to enable designers and salespeople to hone and refresh their creative design skills. The program includes:

60-Minute Live Workshops:

• Setting Up a Successful 1st Customer Meeting
• Hi-Tech vs. High Touch (Host Productive Virtual Meetings)
• The Essential Handbook to Handling Objections
• Selling in the Summer
• Lead With Confidence
• The Ultimate Guide to Exceptional Customer Experience
• 10 Ways to Maximize Year-End Sales
•  Creating a Plan for Success in 2022

Full-Day Classes (2 of each offered per year):

• Kitchen Design & Sales – Level One Class
• Kitchen Design & Sales – Level Two Class

Plus:

• Online Sales Roundtable (2 per year in addition to conferences)
  Interactive discussion of common issues impeding full sales potential, best-practice solutions, and success strategies

Contact Greg Stebbins to learn more.

Seize this opportunity to experience learning that is crucial to the growth and success of your business and also facilitates professional development for you and your entire team. Remember, always be learning. Successful people make time for continued learning. You should too!