Free Training Cannot be a Business Model #Mindsets

I have facilitated trainings for years – product trainings, leadership trainings, function and role based training, workshops on quality guidelines however I have never designed or developed a learning program end to end, though I always knew I can. I will learn what is necessary to deliver.

So, a few months back when the CEO of a coaching company based in US wanted me to design their key program to launch their business, I shot a very basic quote because I was doing it for the first time and did not want to jeopardize their business take off. I am sharing a screenshot of that quote just to show how unpolished I was.

Quotation for Program Design

In fact I actually offered him a little extra – a call script for free – because I seriously wanted to test my abilities in designing the program.

This blog is obviously not to brag about myself but to drive a point. It is this buyer who first mentioned about including a slide on Fixed and Growth Mindset. I must admit I never knew about Carol Dweck before that. Now I know why I had that belief that I will learn what it takes to deliver - That is growth mindset.

Though I know Training people for free can never be a business model however as part of our NGO, when I deliver free coaching sessions to people who really need to up skill themselves to survive, sustain or succeed in life, many a times I see no change in their behavior or attitude for weeks together.

Initially I thought they probably have no urge to learn because they are not paying for it. It is only after my interaction with this buyer that I learnt there is something called fixed mind sets.

Take the test below to find out what kind of mind set you have. 

Fixed versus Growth Mindset

It can be extremely harmful if you are in denial of your fixed-mindset characteristics.

Can fixed mind sets be changed to growth mind sets? I will address this in another blog soon.

References:

Carol Dweck

Early Retirement From Corporate Will Soon Be The New Normal

Just before my birthday a couple of years back, I rent out my city apartment in Bangalore and moved to my new abode in the outskirts – away from active city life and the maddening hustle bustle.

View from my Village Home

A year after that, I abandoned my corporate status. The idea was sabbatical, rejuvenation, soul searching; community initiative, traveling India, multiple visits to my home town or whatever the thought that was lingering in my mind then- is beside the point now. I wanted to explore more. Period!

A few months before settling to my laid back life style in the semi urban zone, I wrapped up my clothes boutique that was operational for over five years – much to the disappointment of my clients and retailers across the two cities I frequented – Home and work place.

I did not look at my bank statements to assure myself how long I can afford this luxury. I had a vague outline though, a rough draft in my mind regarding what I need to do next – Not to step foot in that corridor again that lead to a machine to punch your arrival and departure. I was done with daily time frames, for life.

Today, when I am strolling through a fair in Kolkata and shopping handicrafts on a weekday or boarding an early morning train for a spontaneous trip to Mayapur, it raises a few brows. They wonder if I am still in that travel mode, reckless and irresponsible about my finances and future. 

Talking about finances and future reminds me to mention, recently when a relative visited us with his family, his daughter working for a leading IT company casually commented about how her father’s buying habits had drastically changed after retirement - the most natural thought that crossed my mind was – even after four decades of service there is no financial security to afford an occasional spending urge. Financial literacy is really not everyone’s cup of tea.

While I assist others explore income options both through our NGO and my paid programs, exploit their potential, and discover additional earning streams just the way I developed mine, what I do check at the very outset is their financial literacy.

Most of us are conditioned to live with one source of income almost all our lives, without the slightest inclination to even consider alternatives or dare to be unconventional about livelihood. Little do they realize that it is this dependence on one option that limits them, leading to stress and burnout. Some success areas, no matter how fast you reach are just points of no return.

So you see I am doing a little more than just traveling. All I did was switch my security factor, a conscious shift from job centric to income stream centric to make the most of both – time and life

Should you encounter me in Oxford bookstore in Park Street, on a beach in Pondicherry or cycling through lanes in Barrackpore, it will look like just that – I am still on vacation. Yes I am and No I am not. Confusing eh?

Program Highlights

• Simple flow chart to begin your enterprise: Ideas > Information > Inspiration > Income within 10 months.
• How to manage your business from different locales?
• How to build that motivation first to sustain in the entrepreneurial/ freelancing space?
• What works and what to avoid

Based on BECKON Framework, the evaluation and road map is first to support your outcomes (personal aspirations) and then assist you to transfer that to others, if you want to scale and build an enterprise.