Learn the merchant's trade

The new Elder Scrolls videogame is out and it has been an instant hit, selling millions of copies in only few days. There is a line one of the non-playable characters say "I like to spend time at the market, to learn the merchant's trade". It is a very important concept that a lot of business students ignore, the fact that learning the industry (merchant's trade) is essential.

Often times, people lump many different subjects /areas into one even though they are very distinct from each other because of a lack of specific industry knowledge. Take for example human resources which is actually composed of many areas:

1) Recruiting

2) Retaining Talent

3) Training Managers

4) Payroll

5) Pension / Benefits committees

6) Disciplinary actions / Rule violations

The same could be said about the science of job motivation, which many people do not know that job motivation, satisfaction and performance are all different and should be treated uniquely and differently.

The same could be said for retail, where you have your retail floor/sales personnel, retail management and corporate office - all 3 distinct areas with some similarities but enough differences to be unique.

Accounting is treated differently for different industries such as: real estate, mining, small companies, private companies. People outside of the accounting field are usually not aware of that.