Marion's Blog

You have all experienced this - the "Aha" moment when some small piece of information you get from a friend, or contact, or simply from a book or the internet, suddenly allows you to solve an issue you had been pondering for some time.

There is heaps of information available - but the question remains, how can you - as a busy entrepreneur - get the knowledge that you need, when you need it most. And there is a crucial difference here between Information and Knowledge. Information is data - bits that are written about a topic but not necessarily yet applied to a situation. Knowledge is Information enriched with Experience - can be applied directly to the situation at hand or can be adapted if need be to reflect the new situation.

Information is key in running a business but you need Knowledge even more specifically on a zillion different things, such as:

Finance
Management
Marketing
Sales
Legal
Advertising

and many many more. Too many for you to be an expert on all of these. You can gain experience over time ofcourse, but even then, you'd be a robot if you could become an expert in all of these different areas. You could go out and get an MBA - it would at least give you the theory in many different areas, however - this will be more information and can cost you years of time. When you are then faced with a real live situation - you are still not sure the theory provides you with the best knowledge at that time. Knowledge that is applicable right there and then rather then something you learned at another time/situation.

So how do you get Knowledge when you need it? Well - this is where you need access to experts, coaches, mentors and other people that have experienced what you are experiencing. It does not always have to be the person that studied for 10 years that will give you the answer you are looking for, it could be someone that simply has been there before and has gained knowledge that way. It could be your best buddy, your fellow entrepreneur or the baker round the corner...as long as the situation that they are in, is similar to yours and has allowed the experience blended with the information to become Knowledge that is now applicable to you.

This is why E.Factor is all about sharing information between members, about offering you the possibility to Ask a Coach, to gain expert advice and Knowledge that is valuable and useful. And that is why we are now teaming up with EQMentor - another major resource for our members to find information/knowledge and to get a personal Mentor who's been matched to you based on experience, industry and many other aspects to ensure you get Knowledge rather then more information.

We encourage you to share your knowledge with other members on this site - you never know what you can do to help someone else out there. And ofcourse, we strongly believe that whatever you put in, you will get out in tenfold.