So many companies are ultra competitive, trying to dominate their local area. They hang onto proprietary information and get patents to own their knowledge. This is great and definitely needed so others don't steal your inventions and creative processes. But is it always good to keep your specialized knowledge close to the vest? I believe we are blessed with the ability to learn and comprehend and obligated to give back to help others. I'll even go so far to say that hoarding your knowledge in hopes of retaining your competitive advantage is selfish and unhealthy. My hope is that this episode opens your eyes that sharing your knowledge actually endears you to your target client and will not only increase your business, but serve your community.

During the peak of COVID-19, I was home a lot more than usual and had extra time on my hands. I knew that I needed to dig into the CDC's cleaning & disinfecting recommendations. This lead me into a journey in learning, where I became an expert in disinfecting properly. My next goal was to share this knowledge with my community to empower others to be safe during a difficult time.

• Carfagno Cleaning Facebook Page - I wrote a large summary of two weeks of research on disinfecting, wrote out a 5-episode FB Live series with challenges to share on my business page and mom's groups. I created an intro video on my Carfagno Cleaning FB page and shared it to my personal page and Teresa shared it to the locals mom's group. By the time of my first FB Live episode, the intro had 700 views and 8 shares. The content focused on "90% of people are disinfecting incorrectly" and I would teach how to fix the 9 mistakes. The first Live had 5 viewers and a few comments. This Facebook Live series turned into the "9 Mistakes in Disinfecting".
• MCBA -  Our weekly business-owner's networking group had to go virtual and many were still trying to figure out how to keep their employees safe. I presented a brief summary of my 9 mistakes to equip others. Tom McKee from Edward Jones texted me afterward. This is the same Tom that I met through LinkedIn ("Because You're a Business Person That Cleans"), who introduced me to Marcy (his OM) at Edward Jones for an office cleaning estimate. Again, seeds! Tom loved the tips and was interested in having me teach the Greater Montco Chamber this content. That is in the works. I was not afraid to open my mouth and help with my knowledge.
• Chamber of Commerce - I joined the Indian Valley Chamber in October as the only cleaner inside of 300 members. I met with Ken Byler ("Get a Name for Doing") a few weeks later. He helped me a ton and then came onto a SMART Cleaning Tribe call as an expert. He was impressed at my facilitating skills and proposed to our chamber president that I co-lead a Zoom call for the chamber. I was honored. The call went great. We had 25 members on the call, running companies from 5 to 100+ employees. I was able to promote my business! Afterward, I connected with 5 members that engaged on the call and sent them VidYard messages as thank you's. The chamber would like me to facilitate a webinar on my "9 Mistakes in Disinfecting" next!

Read the rest of this article at the Solo Cleaning School website