By Henry Ukazu

Greetings Dear Friends,

There’s a general presumption that knowledge is power, but in reality, the real power is applied knowledge. This is because if you have knowledge only stored in your brain without the actual application, you might not have the same respect as someone who takes advantage of the opportunity of expressing his/her thoughts. We live in a digital age where innovation and creativity runs like light. Knowledge can be likened to information because when you are duly informed, you’ll have more opportunities, confidence and financial rewards. What most people don’t know is that you’ll only get paid for what you know, and therefore, in order to get money you need to learn more.

In the course of this article, we shall be discussing how resourceful information and knowledge can trigger huge financial and rewarding opportunities for your business or career. The study of philosophy has taught me that there are five forms of knowledge namely: authoritative knowledge which is the knowledge from a person who is regarded as an expert in a particular industry e.g. Medicine, law, accounting or engineer; empirical knowledge which is the knowledge derived from symbols; rational knowledge which is the knowledge derived from solving rational problems like mathematics; divine knowledge which is the knowledge from the creator (God) to man to understand heavenly teachings, and intuitive knowledge which is the knowledge from within a person during impromptu and sane moments. It is well settled that people with informed knowledge and information are always respected, if for nothing else, for what they have upstairs and what they share.

Do you truly and really want to expand your business? If yes, then you have to read. It is said often said that readers are leaders because they tend to make better decisions that produce better results. According to Francis Bacon, “Writing maketh an exact man, conference maketh a ready man, but reading maketh a full man”. Succeeding in life and business entails reading, researching and networking. Starving yourself of knowledge is limiting your earning capacity. Imagine driving a car with an empty gas and expecting to get to your destination. That is basically how limiting yourself and expecting to succeed in life. Your brain needs muscles, exercise them by reading and meditating. Avoid starving your brain the fuel it needs to progress.

Therefore, in order for you to expand your business, you need to figure out your weakness, then look for a mentor/coach in your specific area of interest. According to some schools of thought, one of the ways to decipher how successful or viable a person or organization is by looking at their financial status. Money can be likened to a magnet. You have to attract it by earning it the right way and the best way to attract money is developing your brain by reading. Regardless of your environment, industry, organization or institution you are working on, if you really want to go far, you have to be hungry for information that pertains to the industry, customers and competitors. This is a sure way of expanding your business and net worth.

Just like money can’t be hidden, knowledge can’t be hidden, it is like rays of light. It has a way of showcasing itself. Most rational and informed people with insightful knowledge and intelligence are always humble. These set of people don’t hoard information of interest to the public. People with useful information are always invited to critical meetings where critical information are taken. However, it should be noted that the burden of knowledge is humility. It’s all about your intentions. People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care. It’s unfortunate to note that lesser minds tend to show case their ignorance by making people feel dumb especially when they have facts and figures.

Let’s see how we can increase our fortunes with the right knowledge.

1. Find a Mentor and Improve Your Business Knowledge Immediately: Their business knowledge can help you a lot. Another way to find a great mentor in your community is through networking events related to the industry you plan on focusing your business.
2. Research Information to Increase Your Business Knowledge: Try doing some targeted internet research about your chosen industry. Look around the web for significant articles about successful businesses that are similar to your concept.
3. Get a Business Degree: Many business owners who have reached high levels of success were able to because of their strong amount of knowledge. You can learn more about the details of running a business by taking formal classes or even enrolling in a graduate degree MBA program through the
4. Get Hands-On: An effective way to gain knowledge about the business world is to simply go out and get experience. Before running a business in a specific field, it’s important to develop experience as a worker. If you want to open your own restaurant, try working in a kitchen first. Opening your own retail store could be a better idea if you have worked in sales at some point. If you’re dreaming of running your own car wash, try your hand at helping out an operator before you take the plunge with your own cash investment. Learning to run a business the right way takes a strong amount of dedication to reading, understanding, and meeting potential mentors. Once you gain expertise, you’ll have a much easier time of creating a business that will stand out and find its niche.
5. Education: according to Albert Einstein “Education is what remains after one has forgotten what one has learned in school.” Being open to new and useful knowledge boosts your business, benefits your employees and stimulates your brain.
6. You should also participate in ongoing education. Educate yourself to ensure that you know how to keep your business competitive and relevant in your field. Ongoing education can benefit professionals at any level, but it is especially important for entrepreneurs and those holding upper-level or management positions. Adding to your knowledge can be the difference between seeing mediocre and spectacular growth in your business. Ongoing education shows your clients or customers that you are committed to progress. Take advantage of informal learning as an education source. You don’t need to go back to college or enroll in courses at your local university to enhance your knowledge. Seminars, webinars, conferences, podcasts, blogs, and more are all excellent sources to continue your education. As a business leader, you can learn from other leaders in your field or other fields who have figured out better ways of doing things. You can take free online course on the internet.  Reading is the most resourceful way of searching for this information knowledge attracts respect because they are always informed. Education helps to keep you abreast with contemporary information in your industry.

Furthermore, it is important to note that knowledge is not necessarily expensive, ignorance is. Knowledge increases your success rate. As a business leader, your business is only as strong as the people behind it. As a business owner, you need to strive for personal growth to enable you to thrive professionally. The market is not what it was ten years ago, it most certainly wasn’t the same 5 years ago. It is important to stay current and competitive to win. If you aren’t exposing yourself to new ideas, you are making it easier for your competition to eat your lunch. On the long run, innovation wins, and the most ignorant entrepreneur tends to lose.

Finally, its worthy to note that in order for you to lead, you must read and in order for you to earn you must learn.

STRATEGIES TO IMPROVE YOUR BUSINESS KNOWLEDGE FAST

Here are five strategies to improve your knowledge about business.

Customer knowledge – you should know your customers’ needs and what they think of you. You may be able to develop mutually beneficial knowledge sharing relationships with customers by talking to them about their future requirements, and discussing how you might be able to develop your own products or services to ensure that you meet their needs.

• Employee and supplier relationships– seek the opinions of your employees and your suppliers because they’ll have their own impressions of how you’re performing. You can use formal surveys to gather this knowledge or ask for their views on a more informal basis.
• Market knowledge– Watch developments in your sector. How are your competitors performing? How much are they charging? Are there any new entrants to the market? Have any significant new products been launched?
• Knowledge of the business environment– Your business can be affected by numerous outside factors. Developments in politics, the economy, technology, society and the environment could all affect your business’ development, so you need to keep yourself informed.
• Professional associations and trade bodies Read publications, academic publications, government publications, reports from research bodies, trade and technical magazines.           

• Trade exhibitions and conferences – These can provide an easy way of finding out what your competitors are doing and to see the latest innovations in your sector.
• Product research and development – Scientific and technical research and development can be a vital source of knowledge that can help you create innovative new products – retaining your competitive edge..

In conclusion, I will say, the key to expanding your knowledge and financial life is by gaining resourceful information, knowledge and networking right. The combination of this three factors will definitely make you triumph

Henry Ukazu writes from New York. He works with the New York City Department of Correction as the Legal Coordinator. He’s the author of the acclaimed book Design Your Destiny – Actualizing Your Birthright To Success. He can be reached via henrous@gmail.com