“Help! I need somebody” …The Beatles

Life is hard…imagine your personal capacity is like a backpack…and your life puts things in your backpack…spouse, kids, job, church, friends…but at some point, for all of us, the backpack can be too much. When we add aging parents, teenagers, marriage problems, struggling business, illness (ever heard of COVID?), isolation, and the list goes on…that backpack is more than anyone was ever supposed to carry by themselves. If you are a leader, you may be convinced that you have more capacity than others…that is probably true! …but at some point, life will put more in your backpack than you can carry. What happens when you get there? Crashing at work? Depression? Suicide? Breakdown? Drinking too much? Divorce?

You may be there or have been there…if you haven’t, it is coming. So, what can you do about it? If you insist on carrying everything by yourself the list the previous paragraph may be what is around the corner…As a leader can you say, “I need help…I can’t do this by myself”? If you can there is hope!

If you are a leader, you probably like and are good at helping others be successful. You enjoy carrying some things out of others proverbial “backpack”. When done well what happens? They grow professionally and personally…the succeed. They “run” faster than they could have if you weren’t carrying part of that burden…their capacity grows, and they make take that burden back and be able to shoulder even more. Will you allow others to do that for you?

Here are 3 steps to taking some things out of your backpack so you can be the leader you were created to be, your family, co-workers, vendors and customers need you to be.

1) Swallow your pride and be willing to ask for help (The earth has billions of people and every single one needs help from others…you are in good company)

2) Establish a network of people that care about you…people who will be there when you say “I need help” (These are likely some of the same people that can ask for help from you)

3) Remember…asking for help is not weak or selfish…it is brave, and it not only helps you…it helps your business, your family, your friends, your team members, your customers, vendors…everyone.

Ask for help when you need it…when you do you are a better example and a better leader…Be a leader worth following.