We live in the age of blogs, tweets, and snaps… and I love it.

I love being able to send a quick message and be heard by potentially thousands of people in a matter of minutes. That’s huge! The amount of information we consume on a daily basis is truly amazing. But I wonder: how much am I actually learning and growing based on the type of information I consume?

As a young professional working at an early stage startup, I don’t have the luxury of being mentored by a more experienced industry leader. I have to push myself to grow and learn by consuming the right type of information.

I am at a point right now where I need to start investing in my own training.

I’m struggling with questions like:

• How do I scale my team?
• How can I optimize my sales process?
• How do I structure incentive plans?
• What software exists to make the life of my team easier?
• How do I navigate a complex sale?
• How do I negotiate with large companies?

I realize that there is a lot of readily available materials free of charge, but I’m finding out that the real gold is in high-quality training programs, niche conferences, and 1-on-1s.

One small problem: They are not cheap.

First-rate conferences are expensive. Private coaching is expensive. High-quality training programs cost money.

In my personal experience, there comes a point in your professional life where you feel stuck. You feel like you've reached your limit. It's a sucky feeling. It can feel like defeat. More so if you are a young professional.

When you reach this level of self-awareness you know its time to look for avenues that can help reduce your knowledge gap.

My solution is investing in high-quality training opportunities.

For 2016, I am:

• Attending 1 regional conference and 1 national conference.
• Finishing a high-quality training program based on the recommendation of my industry peers.
• Finding a mentor / coach that can help me think more clearly and strategically.

I've already begun this journey. The results so far have been exactly what I've been looking for.

Training is expensive, but worth it!