does it really work?

[DeMenkey]

I mean I'm not ditching anybody's anything ... I'm just wondering ... Like these How-To books, like these books here Steve is trying to sell. I mean is it HONESTLY worth me spending my money and spend my time on ALL of these books I see on the web. Can't I just go to school? Isn't most of the books all the same? Just wondering before I go waste my money. I read (and lemme tell you I've got literally over 600 gardening / landscaping magazines Andrew books from places like State by State Gardening (I got GA issues right now, plan on buying the FL issues soon) garden gate (by far the best) and a few Ifotgot the names. I plan on when I get the cash enrolling into the gopher school and whatever else I can too. Wont hurt really. Oh yeah, figure I'd do the entire PLANT membership too. I dunno. Honest I am just worried about buying same stuff.that I already know.

[TiedemanLLC]

Lawn care business tips

Originally Posted by DeMenkey I mean I'm not ditching anybody's anything ... I'm just wondering ... Like these How-To books, like these books here Steve is trying to sell. I mean is it HONESTLY worth me spending my money and spend my time on ALL of these books I see on the web. Can't I just go to school? Isn't most of the books all the same? Just wondering before I go waste my money. I read (and lemme tell you I've got literally over 600 gardening / landscaping magazines Andrew books from places like State by State Gardening (I got GA issues right now, plan on buying the FL issues soon) garden gate (by far the best) and a few Ifotgot the names. I plan on when I get the cash enrolling into the gopher school and whatever else I can too. Wont hurt really. Oh yeah, figure I'd do the entire PLANT membership too. I dunno. Honest I am just worried about buying same stuff.that I already know. I will say a few things 1) The PLANET certifications are well worth the money, not to mention any other state certifications with pesticide that are available 2) In regards to the help books, yes you will find that they tend to repeat each other now and then, HOWEVER not all of the books are the same and you will find some new pointers here and there that are different from book to book. It's always best to get a wide arrange of advice and read many different business books. For example, I read the Steve Jobs book not because I wanted to know about him, but also to see whether there were any business examples or advice given in it that I can apply to my business. 3) You will come across stuff that you already know. For example, the amount of stuff that is repeated or "old" in our trade magazines that I already know is a lot. I probably only read about 1/4 of a trade magazine anymore because the stuff is old news or I already know it. So the more that you learn, the more the stuff will repeat itself. That is why you constantly want to find more and new different things (see my advice on #2 about reading many different types of books). I hope that helps a little bit.

[DeMenkey]

Thank you TiedemanLLC, that was very well said. Best advise I've been given today or in awhile foe that matter. LOL

[Steve]

It's all up to you.

There are ways to educate yourself for free and ways to pay for it.

If you want free, read the forum, read my lawn care business blog. If you like books better, read books.

Ideally the benefits of books is that the information has been edited and condensed and you spend less time trying to sift through things to find what you want to know.

But as I say about marketing applies to education too. If you have more money than time, leverage your money (buy books). If you have more time than money, leverage your time (read forums and blogs).

Oh and one last point. As you learn more and more about any topic, it gets tougher to mine for new information. At that point, you start finding yourself digging through content sources and hoping if I can just get one thing out of this, you then feel it is worth it.

[SECTLANDSCAPING]

I read a few books about business and a few landscaping specific business books. I did read some landscaping books but they were mostly planting, fences, and walkways. All stuff I barely do. I also have 3-4 trade magazines sent to me monthly.

I did take in some good info from all the books. A few were repeating the same stuff but others gave me good ideas. Its easier to take a book with me then to google on premises. I picked up alot of info on forums, blogs, and talking to others. So it all depends on how you like information presented to you. I for one have been looking for videos with no luck.

[DeMenkey]

Thanks guys. My battery Is about to die on me so lemme be quick. Tommorrow ill have a treat for you guys since you guys are helping me.

[elitelawnteam1]

It depends on what you're getting into. Are you just starting out? In my opinion, I don't think you really need a book approach. I learned by myself, made mistakes along the way. I think it's very beneficial for starting out. The best way to find things out is by asking real professionals these questions on the forum.