The 10 Business Lessons You Can Learn From Sherlock Holmes

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1. Master your craft

Sherlock Holmes is a master of deduction. Aside from his natural talents, he constantly develops his skills. Before you start a business, your skills need to be excellent. Whether you are selling a product or service, you should know how it works inside and out.

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2. Be obsessed with what you do

One marked characteristic of Sherlock Holmes is that he is absolutely obsessed with puzzles. He loves it so much that the police don’t even pay him for his consulting services; the thrill of solving crimes is reward enough. You hear successful business people say this all the time: you must love what you do. Most entrepreneurs would be willing to work for free, money is never the goal, it is the by-product.

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3. Keep your mind sharp

Sherlock Holmes thought useless information in his brain was like having boxes of junk in the attic, it only makes the stuff you need harder to find. Cluttering your mind with periphery distractions can derail your focus.

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4. Be observant

What makes Sherlock Holmes so great is that he notices things that others miss. Often times, the solution is right in front of our eyes. Train yourself to pick up on the irregularities whether it’s someone’s body language, a hidden agenda, or an upcoming trend. Always be ahead of the curve if you want to stay relevant.

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5. Have others admire you

Sherlock Holmes does what others cannot, and makes it look easy. Create a product or service that is so superior that others follow you. Be a trend setter, and don’t follow what everyone else is doing.

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6. Be in the know

Sherlock Holmes once said, “It is my business to know what other people don’t know.” To be valuable in business, you have to know what others don’t know.

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7. Be secretive

Sherlock Holmes doesn’t always disclose his motives and neither should you. Often we can learn a great deal of information when we don’t reveal the cards we hold. Even if you don’t know something, act like you do, this mystery will allure people toward you.

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8. Partner up

Even the great Sherlock Holmes needed his faithful companion, Dr. Watson. If your skills are so specialized in one area, they may be lacking in another. Recognize your deficiencies and partner up with someone whose skills complement your own.

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9. Remain objective

Sherlock Holmes is impassive while on a case, he only looks at what the evidence suggests. Whether it’s a negotiation or a tough decision, emotions can be your enemy in business. To keep them out of the boardroom, be objective in your dealings and don’t let emotions cloud your judgement.

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10. Always be imaginative

Sherlock Holmes thinks outside the box, that is how he can piece together seemingly ordinary and unrelated elements of a case into a cohesive story. One of the key elements in business is to constantly innovate and separate your business from the pack. This requires a constant stream of good ideas. Creativity is a soft skill and although it cannot be taught, it can be developed. Train your mind to think outside the box and be prepared to capture new ideas when moments of genius strike.

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Article by Edward Mullen

Author of The Art of the Hustle and Destiny and Free Will

Host of The Edward Mullen Podcast

www.EdwardMullen.com

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3 thoughts on “The 10 Business Lessons You Can Learn From Sherlock Holmes

  1. nizran says:

    Sir, I would like a permission to re-post lots2 of information here to my blog or fb, i will always put the reference of the post n link to the original post at the blog. Please.

    Like

  2. Blake Argo says:

    First off, love that show and secondly this is a creative way to relay important advice when it comes to starting your own business. I have found that my success in the business world is due to the fact that I follow the careers of those who are more successful than myself. I have been following the career of Mark Hurd for the last few years now, since he has taken over at Oracle. I have also been impressed with this leadership and ability to turn a company around. I have closely following his statements at OpenWorld 2016 and I am excited for what he has in store. Here is a link to am article about OpenWorld 2016:

    Like

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