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Every writer I know has trouble writing.” ~Joseph Heller
Recently, like many writers, I was having a hard time coming up with new concepts to write about. I was struggling and at first I didn’t want my colleagues to know and, more importantly, I did not want to let down ActiveGarage by not being able to contribute.
As luck would have it, our Active Mentor, Rajesh Setty, happened to be in town and I was fortunate enough to sit down with him for a couple of hours before he flew home. The first hour of our “meeting” was your typical get together with common questions and just plain catching up. As we continued with our conversation, I finally mentioned to Rajesh that I had been struggling recently with finding new material to write about. I had the infamous “writers block” and I wondered how I got this so early on in to my journey with ActiveGarage. With so much information available to us at our fingertips how could this possibly be happening?
The next hour of our conversation was about what I could write about. We were tinkering with new ideas. He was helping me get out of my rut. With his help, I was thinking again all because I reached out for help.
While most of us find it hard to ask for help because of our fear that others might see it as a sign of weakness, once you become comfortable asking, it can be very empowering and liberating. As psychologist Dr. Deborah Serani states, “Asking for help creates an atmosphere of empowerment. It communicates to others that, while you may not have the answers, you are willing to find them and make things better.”
So how do you ask for help?
- Recognize and identify the problem.
- Look within your network of help on who to go to. This step can be the hardest because so many people don’t like admitting to others that they have a problem to begin with.
- When you reach out for help, be direct (and polite of course). Tell the person you are reaching out to the problem you are experiencing. No one likes to deal with a passive-aggressive plea for help.
- Be clear in your request for help. It’s important for the person you are asking for help to understand not only what your breakdown is, but what your desired end result should be. This is easier said than done, but very important.
Think of how you feel when a friend reaches out to you for help and you’re able to assist. Great, right? Well, it’s never too late to reciprocate and ask for help.