Have you ever watched professional athletes play and wonder how they perform so well. When the quarterback or point guard calls a play, how do his teammates know how to react? Of course, we don't wonder how this happens—because we all know. They've spent the whole week practicing.
Here's an interesting question, though. Professional athletes have spent their whole lives playing the game, so why do they still need to practice? Can't they just show up and perform? Why do they still have to prepare? Wasn't their initial training enough?
We ask the same sort of question in business. All too often, we train our people when they first begin and then just expect them to perform at their full potential thereafter. Like athletes, though, employees need continual training if they hope to get continual improvement. Are you investing in training your people on a constant basis, or do you just expect the first few weeks on the job to do the trick?
In the world of business, training is like practice before the big game. It provides a safe space for employees to test out ideas, ask questions, and try to new things without the risk of it hurting the business. Training is a sandbox that allows employees to make mistakes where it doesn't cost so much. We often think about the costs of training, but have you ever considered the costs of not training? Depending on the competition, it could very well mean losing the game.
David Lykken, a 43-year veteran of the mortgage industry, is president of Transformational Mortgage Solutions (TMS), a management consulting firm that provides transformative business strategies to owners and “C-Level” executives via consulting, executive coaching and various communications strategies. He is a frequent guest on FOX Business News and hosts his own weekly podcast called “Lykken On Lending” heard Monday’s at 1:00 p.m. ET at LykkenOnLending.com. David’s phone number is (512) 759-0999 and his e-mail is [email protected].
