Have you ever wanted to grow in a particular area?
Often, the first thing most of us do is go find books, courses, podcasts and other resources on the topic. This is great. We go to the experts to learn about something that is important to us.
But did you know that there’s something even greater taking place? Did you know that the person you’re learning from is growing even more than you are as a result of their teaching?
You see, the teacher always learns and grows the most.
Knowing this has changed my life.
When I want to grow or improve in an area, I start to teach it!
This has especially been the case in spiritual areas for me. When I want to grow, I agree to teach a class on it, or I suggest it as a topic for my small group and I take the lead on teaching. It forces me to research the subject, to study it, to organize it, and most importantly, to live it.
As a teacher I have benefited tremendously from exercising this.
But there are other motives for teaching. And this is important to know because they say that people always have two motives for what they do, and you want to aim to have pure motives.
Some reasons people teach are:
1) Because they are asked to.
Some people teach out of a sense of obligation, because someone asked them to do so.
These classes or teachings are usually boring, and there’s often little energy in the room or class.
2) Because of the money.
Many teach for the money.
One example is “brainstorming” meetings where info-marketers get together to come up with a new concept to teach. Their focus is on what people will pay for rather than what will actually help. Virtual is cool, Wholesaling is always cool, so why not teach Virtual-Wholesaling?
It doesn’t matter that they’ve never done it, just that people will pay for it.
3) Because they like to help others.
This is a pure motive. Many people genuinely like helping others grow simply for the benefit of those they’re helping.
This is one of my primary reasons for teaching. I love helping others.
4) Because they also want to grow.
Back to the big point. The background question you should ask about a teacher is are they trying to grow as a person or grow their bank account?
It’s not wrong for someone to want to make money or get paid for teaching, especially if they’re giving of their time and sacrificing other things to teach.
But if the only reason your teacher is doing it is to grow their bank account, you need to be focused on making the most of it on your own. They won’t be there for you after they have your money.
A person who wants to grow will be there with you for the ride because they will grow as you grow.
(Note: You should really hear some of the life-changing stories coming from our Getaways lately—you might even consider joining us for one sometime soon, if you’ve not been lately.)
When teachers can combine a desire to grow personally with a desire to help, they can do amazing things and make a very impactful difference in the lives of those they teach.
They are in it for the long haul. They continue to live what they teach, and both the student and teacher are better for it.
So, the next time you want to grow in an area, consider: can you teach others so you can grow together?
Have you found yourself growing during your teaching moments? I would love to hear how you relate to this in the comments.