So often I speak to people who are waiting for the perfect moment to set up an RTO.
Have you ever started something, to only find half way through, that you’ve been trying too hard or trying to be too perfect? So you stop. You don’t get going again and then it fades away. The opportunity is lost.
Perfection is a trap.
It holds you hostage. The state of being perfect does not exist. So do we need it when starting an RTO? Yes you need to cover all the aspects of the Standards when you set an RTO. No it doesn’t need to be perfect – it is all about continuous improvement. 
Maybe the course you created doesn’t really flow well the way you wanted it to or the assessment project you created doesn’t provide the end result you imagined. So change it up. The reality is doesn’t matter, as long as you continue to meet the Standards. The students won’t know what it was meant to look like. It is the same with your life. How do we know what is meant to happen. How do we know if the RTO business is the right one to follow? We don’t until we make a start, and then continuous improvement happens. It evolves, and turns into a better, bigger business.
For those who are considering setting up their own RTO, but find they hear themselves saying the time is not perfect yet. I will start it when:
- I have $XXX in the bank
- Jimmy has finished school
- the economy returns
- we move house
- I have my new premises
- Christmas, or in the new year are over
Maybe oneday
I should, I should, I should someday…
If this inner dialogue sounds familiar, know this for now: You ARE perfect just as you are, and you can start for reasons that are important to you. Know those reasons first!
The “someday” syndrome plagues perfectionists. You think too much about your dream – You never take that first step because what if it’s not the perfect first step?
Perfection is a moving target, forever deluding those of us silly enough to chase it. You can’t ever catch it, it is much the same as chasing a rainbow, or your shadow, or a fleeting thought. Perfection is now, right now. Just stop and look around. That is perfect.
Sure it’s normal to feel you want to do it better. But if you find that perfectionism is controlling everything, you may find you need to trade perfectionism for peace.
You don’t have to be perfect, and clients will still respect you, and your life will be so much richer and more satisfying.
It would be better to consider perfection as a quest for continuous improvement. A way to define your professional practice.
Continuous improvement of your business
As an RTO owner / CEO there are many reasons why you need to engage in the continuous improvement of your business.
These include:
- Listening to stakeholders and their feedback;
- Changes in industry;
- Supporting the industry and community;
- Improving your service – striving to provide the best service for VET clients – learners and industry;
- Improving the validity, reliability, flexibility and fairness of assessments;
- Supporting ongoing RTO quality assurance;
- Enhancing the reputation and recognition of the RTO and its services;
- Minimising risks associated with the RTO practices;
- Informing staff selection and guiding professional development.
So think of your journey to set up your RTO as a continual changing beast. Sometime that can be improved over time. Not having to make it perfect right now.