--- title: You Are Teaching. But Are You Also Learning? | The Sales Blog description: One of the ways you create value for your clients is by having the business acumen and the situational knowledge to help them do better business. Having a teachable insight is all the rage, even though I don’t believe it’s easy to get real chops (and I don’t believe we’re doing what is really required). […] image: https://www.thesalesblog.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Screen-Shot-2013-08-13-at-7_26_05-PM.png --- ### [Now booking SKO meetings for 2026/27! 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But Are You Also Learning? ![Anthony Iannarino](https://www.thesalesblog.com/hubfs/ai-blog-profile-crop.jpg) Post by [Anthony Iannarino](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/author/anthony-iannarino) August 13, 2013 One of the ways you create value for your clients is by having the business acumen and the situational knowledge to help them do better business. Having a teachable insight is all the rage, even though I don’t believe it’s easy to get real chops (and I don’t believe we’re doing what is really required). But as important as it is to be able to share your insight in a meaningful way, using your insight to create value for your customer, it’s equally important that [you learn](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/guess-who-else-has-insight). I’m reflecting on my own business experience. In the industry in which I grew up, I spent time with literally thousands of different businesses. I dealt with hundreds of different types of businesses. I worked with companies in all kinds of verticals, with all kinds of [strategies](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/business-models-matter), and with very different business needs. By working with these different companies, I got a first rate business education. I was taught how their businesses worked. I was taught how they thought about their businesses. And working with them to solve some of their greatest challenges, I picked up insights and ideas that I could then use to help other clients in different industries. I’m naturally curious. I’m interested in other people, and I am interested in their businesses. It’s fascinating. In a lot of cases I asked business leaders who had knowledge that I didn’t to [share](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/guerrilla-sales-development) their ideas with me. Not only did I learn a lot, but it made these leaders much more open for me to share my thoughts and ideas with them. Having business acumen, situational knowledge, or “insight” if you must, levels the playing field. It makes you a peer when you’re speaking with decision-makers and decision-influencers. But where you going to get all the ideas you need? How are you going to know what works and what doesn’t work? What [experience](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/what-to-do-when-you-dont-have-situational-knowledge) are going to leverage when you haven’t yet had some the experiences you need? How are you going to know how different business leaders in different verticals think about the problems and challenges they are facing? Teaching is good. But you’ll have a lot more to teach if you are also a [perpetual student](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/how-to-keep-the-beginners-mind) and if you remember that you still have much to learn. The more open you are to learning, the faster you become valuable for your clients. **Questions** How much emphasis are you placing on really learning versus learning to teach? How many insights should you have? How many insights do you need to really be valuable for your clients? What do you teach when your teachable insight doesn’t resonate with your dream client?   ###### Tags: [Sales](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/tag/sales) [2013](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/tag/2013) Post by [Anthony Iannarino](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/author/anthony-iannarino) on August 13, 2013 Written and edited by human brains and human hands. ![Anthony Iannarino](https://www.thesalesblog.com/hubfs/ai-blog-profile-crop.jpg) Anthony Iannarino is an American writer. He has published daily at [thesalesblog.com](https://www.thesalesblog.com) for more than 14 years, amassing over 5,300 articles and making this platform a destination for salespeople and sales leaders. Anthony is also the author of four best-selling books documenting modern sales methodologies and a fifth book for sales leaders seeking revenue growth. His latest book for an even wider audience is titled, The Negativity Fast: Proven Techniques to Increase Positivity, Reduce Fear, and Boost Success. Anthony speaks to sales organizations worldwide, delivering cutting-edge sales strategies and tactics that work in this ever-evolving B2B landscape. He also provides workshops and seminars. Connect with Anthony on LinkedIn, X or Youtube. 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What we’re doing right now **is working**, even in this challenging economy. **Would you like some help?** [![Solve for Sales](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/2922376/d3a4938b-2008-4a27-8b44-7b2223f6d035.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/2922376/d3a4938b-2008-4a27-8b44-7b2223f6d035) ### Join my Weekly Newsletter for Sales Tips Join 100,000+ sales professionals in my weekly newsletter and get my *Guide to Becoming a Sales Hustler* eBook for FREE! --- ```json { "@context" : "http://schema.org/", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Anthony Iannarino" }, "dateModified" : "2024-09-11T12:04:23 PM", "datePublished" : "2013-08-13 19:40:54", "description" : "One of the ways you create value for your clients is by having the business acumen and the situational knowledge to help them do better business. 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