Business-Building Action From Terry Brock
Success in business today requires on-going education and learning. Successful salespeople know that today. Fortunately we have an abundance of tools to help with the learning process.
One that I discovered recently is the ER900 Partner from Ectaco. To say this little device takes a quantum leap forward in learning a language is an understatement. It is nothing short of “uber-WOW!” in what it can do.
The folks at Ectaco loaned me a unit and I have been playing with it for a couple of weeks to work on my Russian language skills. The ER900 (Russian-English Talking Dictionary) has 1, 200,000 words in total. It has 25,000 business words, 57,000 finance words, 69,000 law words, 34,000 medical terms, 43,000 oil and gas words, and 24,000 information and technology words.
One of the features I particularly like is the Flash Card section. It not only shows you words you can learn but as you pronounce them the device gives you audible feedback. It will say “Terrific!” or “We’ll come back to that later” or other phrases depending on how you say the word or phrase. You can think of it like having a translator with you on the spot.
Many common phrases used when traveling or at banks, restaurants, shops and other places are packed into the device. “Pictured Dictionary” gives you flashcards with the words. It has different topics you can choose from, and additional flashcards can be downloaded.
Ectaco supports language learning in 190 languages so you have a good chance to find what you need. Once you have one unit you can purchase additional SD cards for specific languages at $39 each. This makes the unit very versatile and flexible for international travelers and businesses who need to communicate with people from different countries.
In sum, this device is an excellent partner to have when learning a language. It is very helpful to learn key phrases in a language. It is also very good to have with you when you need to communicate with others. You can put in the phrase you want and have it translated back in the other language. This is truly the next generation in language learning and communication.
(Partner ER900, www.Ectaco.com, $599.95 Retail)
Other Technology Tools For Learning
Since learning is so important in business, I wanted to share with you some of the other tools I’ve discovered to assist in learning. I’d welcome your ideas and what has worked for you.
To jog your ideas — and remind you of some great technologies for learning, here is a list of helpful learning technologies which can help as you’re expanding your thinking abilities.
Technology Tool Creative Ways It Can Boost Your Brainpower
Digital Voice Recorder Capturing important audio phrases, help with language-learning, recording important conversations, etc.
Camcorder Capturing your unique “How-To” videos, advice from others, etc.
E-Book Readers Ability to have larger volume of resources available. Bonus: iPad combines text, audio and video!
The Right Blogs Educational mind-expanding Blogs
Skype Free access to smart people around the planet (video is a plus!)
Podcasts Find the best for you and listen regularly while in “university of the car”
Scanners Retain important articles for ready future reference when needed
For learning to be effective, it takes pro-active effort on the part of the learner. Make learning and constant growth a vital part of what you do. Embrace it as part of your lifestyle.
As technology continues to evolve and change, we have to embrace an attitude of constant, never-ending learning. Often we’ll want to slow down and stay with what we have. However, that doesn’t prepare us for new ideas and new ways to learn that are developing.
This also means you’ll have to give up something. We all have only 24 hours in the day so we have to be selective. Perhaps turning off the TV for a few evenings could help you find more time for learning.
The Ectaco ER900 is a great technology for language learning. Other tools are available and a creative use of them can help to give you an advantage with extra knowledge. That extra knowledge can help with business and in your personal life.
Copyright (c) 2010, Terry Brock and Achievement Systems, Inc. Terry Brock is an international marketing coach and professional speaker who helps businesses generate profitable results. He can be reached by e-mail at terry@terrybrock.com or through his website at www.terrybrock.com. Join the Twitter adventure with Terry through his Twitter address: @TerryBrock
