Help is Not a Dirty Word
Five keys to unlocking better relationships and winning at life
Help. Few words are as loaded with meaning. Many of us think asking for help telegraphs weakness. We fear appearing needy or incompetent in part because we recoil from people who appear to us to be needy or incompetent.
Some think accepting help means we’re obligated to return the favor. Or we define ourselves by our helping behavior; without someone to help, someone we can save or support, we feel lost. We might love to help, hate to help, or find it all depends on who’s asking and what the circumstances are.
Untangling our complicated relationship with help enables us to reach our highest potential. We all know we need help sometimes. In fact, author of Big Potential Shawn Achor, noted helping each other and creating networks of interdependence are key to improving our success in work and life. Unlocking this potential requires seeing help in a new light. Here are five keys you need to succeed.
#1: Asking for Help Builds Relationships
Statesman and inventor Ben Franklin noted an “old maxim” that helped him improve his work and relationships: “He that has once done you a kindness will be more ready to do you another, then he whom you yourself have obliged.”
