I believe your knowledge and expertise is your most precious gift that deserves to be shared. In this video, I share with you the importance of sharing your knowledge in Project Controls no matter how much experience you have or how young or seasoned professional you are. Check out my journey in sharing my knowledge and how you can do the same.
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Video Transcript:
“Who do you think you are?”
This was the question that I asked myself early on in my career when I decided to share my knowledge.
Have you ever had some self-defeating thoughts such as, “Who do you think you are?”, “Come on, you are too young. You don’t have enough experience for this.” Or “I’m not ready for that yet, I need more experience.” Or “What people would think of me if I do that?”
It’s completely natural to have any of those thoughts, especially when you’re just starting something new; something challenging out of your comfort zone.
Those questions came to my mind when I decided to teach and share my knowledge. However, I didn’t let those self-defeating thoughts to stop me from moving forward in the direction of my dreams, the vision that I envisioned for my career. Instead, I faced the challenge with open arms.
Let me get personal and share my own story on how I started teaching and sharing my knowledge.
My humble beginning in sharing my knowledge
I approached a training provider specialized in providing technical training primarily in the field of engineering. In a meeting with the director of the company, I expressed my interest in teaching a subject on “Project Controls.” He showed immense interest in the subject and told me “Shohreh, I’ll give you 6 months to develop a course in Project Controls. Meanwhile, I will market the course and find the audience for your course. Just go ahead, develop a course in 6 months and come back.”
My thinking was “Perfect! That gives me a good ground to test whether or not I’m capable of sharing my knowledge.”
I put a lot of energy and effort in developing a course. Six months passed by very quickly and finally, the day came; the big day to teach to an audience, complete strangers, from different industries, at different ages and experiences. The negative thoughts popped into my mind again, “What if….. followed by a negative statement.” But I told myself back then, “Shohreh, you wanted to test this, so go ahead. Don’t be afraid of it. Just go with the flow and see how it goes. Remember you’re testing whether or not this is for you.”
I taught a 3-day course and did my best. At the end of the course, the audience was very happy with the course. They all gave me 5-star reviews and the feedback was amazing! Such that the director requested another course on Project Controls and gave me another 6 months to develop a new course.
That was the beginning of my teaching experience. I was teaching at Educational Institutes and at the same time doing my full-time corporate job because I wanted to challenge myself and share my knowledge. The more I did it, the more confidence I got by doing that.
In addition to teaching at educational institutes, I was teaching and sharing my knowledge with my co-workers as well. Seeing my passion in teaching, my employer requested that I conduct several training sessions for project managers, project leads and Engineering discipline leads, as well as other stakeholders who were providing information to the Project Controls discipline.
The most rewarding part of this teaching experience at work was that I had engineers coming back and saying to me “Now everything starts making sense to me. Now I understand why you always want that progress report from us.” Or “Now I understand when you’re saying, my CPI is low what you mean. Now everything starts making sense.” They started appreciating more the value that the Project Controls discipline was adding to the organization. They started becoming more receptive to our demands. We could get their buy-ins in doing the things that we wanted in the organization.
Fast forward 10 years, now I have the blessing of teaching to tens of thousands of professionals worldwide and even several International organizations to build their Project Control technical knowledge and expertise.
If I could do that, so can you. But you have to start from somewhere. I recommend you start with your organization and from the project teams that you are involved in.
Why Bother Sharing Your Knowledge?
Some may argue “why should I share my knowledge?” I worked so hard to get to where I am today. I earned it. So, why should I share with someone else for his/her development?
I believe your knowledge and expertise is your most precious gift that deserves to be shared. It’s yours, yes; you’ve earned it. But why keep all that wisdom to yourself? Why not spread it out into the world and lift others to new heights with your knowledge?
And the best part is sharing your expertise not only helps others in their professional endeavors, but it also helps you.
Sharing your knowledge engrains and expands what you know. Nothing helps deepens your knowledge than sharing it. There is no better way to learn than to teach.
In addition to deeper learning, sharing your knowledge will position you as a leader in your field. By sharing your knowledge, you are showcasing your expertise. Instead of telling people you’re an expert, you give them a taste in a way that helps raise their level of expertise too.
There is a saying that “Those who know, do. Those who understand, teach.”
I gained tremendous benefits by sharing my knowledge. I reached to levels that once I believed were impossible.
Sharing your knowledge can be one of the most impactful things you do in your career. Leave a legacy by sharing your knowledge.
How Can You Share Your Knowledge?
I believe the safest place to share your knowledge is inside your organization. Start sharing your experience and knowledge with a small team; it can be your co-workers or people whom you have a direct influence on. Don’t be afraid whether you have enough experience to share your knowledge. Just start by something small but start something that matters.
Are You Ready to Share Your Knowledge?
I don’t expect you to have 30 or 40 years of experience to start sharing your knowledge and teach. How many of those seasoned individuals you have seen that they have everything, the knowledge, and expertise, but they cannot transfer their knowledge in an easy and understandable language? In contrary, how many young professionals have you encountered who are great teachers?
Don’t let your years of experience and other limiting beliefs stop you from sharing your knowledge and expertise. I didn’t.
You don’t need permission from anyone to share your knowledge. There are people out there who don’t know what you know. Don’t be afraid of sharing your most precious gift; your knowledge.
Why Sharing Your Knowledge in Project Controls is VITAL?
When it comes to Project Controls, as you know in our industry most of us learn Project Controls through experience, not a formal education; so there’s always a demand for learning. Why not starting small from your own organization, adding value to your company by sharing your knowledge.
If you have budget issues in Project Controls, did you know that one of the primary reasons is lack of proper Project Controls education in your organization? Did you know the funding issue can be improved when you start educating your team on Project Control concepts?
In an organization that I was working for, we could increase the budget allocated to Project Controls in projects when we started educating Project Managers and Discipline Leads on Project Controls concepts and applications. They not only saw the value that Project Controls was adding to the organization, but also they realized the amount of time it required to produce each report.
Remember, people with the knowledge, skills, and initiative to make things happen can only accomplish the mission of your organization. Capturing and sharing even some of the basics can go a long way in equipping current and future employees to carry on your organization’s important work.
So please share your knowledge in Project Controls within your organization.
How to Share Your Knowledge in Project Controls with the World
If you want to have your message reach the hands of people across the globe, I will be happy to help. Right now, I’m blessed to have the platform where professionals from over 134 countries watching our videos and following our Project Controls resources on a daily basis.
So if you think you have a message, a lesson learned, or an idea for Project Control professionals, reach out to us. What you can do is go to www.projectcontrolacademy.com/contact-us and submit your request.
Sharing your wisdom online could be one of the most impactful things you ever do and we help you achieve that.
If you want to be part of this movement, to add value to the Project Controls community, go ahead and submit your articles.
In Conclusion:
Going back to my earlier statement “Who do you think you are?” I don’t have that thought anymore but I’ve faced some people who ask me this question. “Who do you think you are?” My answer to these individuals is, “I’m a student. I’m a student who’s passionate about learning every day and sharing her knowledge on whatever she has learned throughout this path to other people.” That’s my mission to share my expertise no matter how much experience I have; whatever I have learned, I would like to share. So I urge you to do the same and share your knowledge.
According to Laurie Bowman, “If you’re in a role where you’re exercising your communication skills, sharing your knowledge, and helping people solve problems creatively, you are likely to be in very high demand in the future.” So, the pathway to a brighter future for you is your ability to share your knowledge.
Your knowledge is your most precious gift that deserves to be shared. Share your gifts with the world, my friend.
About the Author, Shohreh Ghorbani
Shohreh is a licensed project management professional (PMP) recognized by Project Management Institute (PMI) and holds a Master of Science in Industrial Engineering.
Connect with Shohreh via Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube
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