Tips on Asking for Help

hasseman marketing help “If it’s to be, it’s up to me.”   I love that quote.  And I have worked hard to live my life that way.  I wanted to accomplish things “on my own.”  Truth be told, I even quietly looked down on people who needed help from others to accomplish their dreams.   And while there is nothing wrong with being self-sufficient, it can only take you so far.  To create something really great, you need a team of people “rowing in the same direction.”  Intellectually I know that.  But in my heart, I struggle with it.  I want to just do it myself.   When I get like this, I am reminded of a quote that my friend Danny Rosin told me, “If you want to go fast, go alone.  If you want to go far, go together.” It leads me to announce, I suck at asking for help.  (I wrote an entire blog about other things I suck at here).  I tell you this, not because I want to beat myself up.  I just know it is something I need to work on.  We all have these areas.  So here are some things I am trying to do to get better at asking for help. 1.  Take a breath:  I know my natural reaction when people ask me for help is to say “no, I got this.”  So when people ask me if they can help, I need to take a breath and consider it.  That quick break can allow me to react smarter. 2.  Have a list:  My life is one long to do list right now…that never seems to be completed.  So I need to have a list of things that “I need help with.”  That way I don’t have to start from scratch.  If I have to really think hard, I will say no.  So I need to create a list of things that people can help me with in advance. 3.  Seek it out:  There are people in my life that are simply better than me at certain tasks.  I need to pro-actively seek them out.  Doing this with success will lead me to flex that “asking muscle.” How do you ask for help?  What works for you? Make sure you never miss an update!  It’s time to sign up for our VIP newsletter here.  Oh…and you can always shop online for great SWAG here.  Or…you can ask us for help!   

Written by: Kirby Hasseman

Kirby Hasseman is the CEO of Hasseman Marketing & Communications. Kirby hosts a weekly Web show called Delivering Marketing Joy where he interviews business leaders from around the country. Kirby has published four books. His most recent is “Fan of Happy.” His book, called "Delivering Marketing Joy" is about doing “promo right” and is perfect for people in the industry and customers. He also wrote “Think Big For Small Business” and “Give Your Way to Success. All are available on Amazon.