How to Keep Your Skills Relevant to Your Contracting Business

In order to get your contractor license, you have to prove that you have both skills and experience in the field. Once you get the license, staying relevant becomes your next goal. A lot of people may accidentally work themselves out of a job simply by relying on everything they learned years ago. Systems change, and the best practices to work within them improve as a result. To keep going, you’ll need to improve with them. Here are five things you can do to ensure that your skills remain competitive for your field.

  1. Find a Mentor
    In many ways, the construction industry is set up so the people who are just starting out will automatically have lots of opportunities to work with experienced professionals in their field. This doesn’t always mean that you will end up with a mentor that you can call upon for support for the majority of your career, however. Finding a mentor who has the right approach to running a business in your field can be very useful, especially in the first several years. They can help you identify areas that you will need to continue to study, as well as lots of advice for how to keep the business going throughout the years.
  1. Take Classes
    Getting your contractor’s license usually takes a fair number of classes and years of working in the field. Once you get that license, it can be tempting to think that you are done with your education for good. However, this might mean that your knowledge stagnates. As new innovations come out, you want to make sure that you have opportunities to know what they are, with a few toward becoming an expert in using them. Taking classes periodically throughout your career, and offering the same for your employees, helps to ensure that everyone’s skills remain fresh and relevant to client needs.
  1. Add Another Classification to Your License
    You might decide that you only want to pursue one classification within a specific field. However, this may deny you the opportunity to grow and possibly expand your services and your business over time. Adding to your license gives you a larger repertoire of products and services that you can offer to clients. This can give you better longevity and flexibility to work within a changing industry. Occasionally evaluating your services and deciding if another classification might work well makes sure that you have a steady source of updated skills to offer.
  1. Attend Conferences
    One of the best ways to find out what is going on in the industry as a whole, and your field specifically, is to attend construction conferences. You don’t have to attend all of them, and you may not even need to attend them once a year. However, booking time in your schedule and investing the money to attend conferences it is an excellent opportunity to:
  • Test out new technologies
  • Network
  • Learn more about changes in practices for the industry

Many conferences are located in or near California, which means that you may not have to devote as many resources as you expect.

  1. Network
    When you find that you tend to work with the same people all the time, and they all do things in a particular way, it may be time to break outside that box. Networking gives you a great chance to get to know industry influencers and find new contacts in your area. You don’t necessarily have to be a great conversationalist or limit your interactions to people who work in your field. Just talking to other construction professionals and even potential clients may help you get a better feel for where your field is headed, with some possible contacts for future work.

Keeping your skills relevant is something that most business owners have to consider throughout their tenure. If you stay on top of it, you will reap the rewards. To discover the benefits of a great career in construction, contact CSLS today!

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About CSLS

Contractors State License Service (CSLS) is the largest school in California devoted to the Construction professional. For over 23 years, CSLS has helped its students pass the exam to become licensed contractors in the State of California, licensing more students than any other school. From our main offices in Southern California, CSLS operates over 25 locations with full-service support and classrooms. We have grown to this extent by providing quality, professional services. In comparison, this provides 7 times the number of convenient locations than the second largest contractor school. Contractors State License Services is one of the only contractor schools in the state that is run by educators, not lawyers or people mostly interested in the bonding and insurance business. Contractors State License Services formerly operated under the oversight of the State of California's Bureau for Private Post Secondary and Vocational Education. As of January 1 2010, the new Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education (BPPE) came into existence replacing the BPPVE. CSLS now operates under the provisions of the California Private Postsecondary Education Act of 2009 (CPPEA), Article 4 Section 94874(f). Our Mission is simple; We can help you pass your California Contractors License Exam. Celebrating our 25th year, CSLS has helped over 120,000 students pass the California contractor licensing exam to become licensed contractors in the State of California. Additionally, we offer complete home study and online contractor’s license programs to help you pass your California contractors license exam. CSLS offers licensing classes for all types of contractor licenses, including General Engineering Contractor, General Building Contractor, Specialty Contractor, Insulation and Acoustical Contractor, Framing and Rough Carpentry Contractor, Cabinet, Millwork and Finish Carpentry Contractor, Concrete Contractor, Drywall Contractor, Electrical Contractor, Elevator Contractor, Landscaping Contractor, Warm-Air Heating, Ventilating and Air-Conditioning Contractor, and many others. For a complete list of contractor licenses, visit www.MakeMeAContractor.com and tuned for more informative posts.