No one person is able to do everything that needs to be done. As a result, everyone needs help now and then. Do you know the ways in which you need help?
A surefire way to lead to failure is to try to do everything by yourself. In all likelihood, you will exhaust your own energy, raise your own stress level, and fall short of your various goals.
Successful people are good at involving others in their endeavors. For example, most successful marriages involve two people who are stronger together than each is separately. When one person might be overextended, a second person can help to lighten the load.
Related: Listen to an episode of the Intellectual Roundtable Podcast, where Lee and Michael discuss this question: ‘Are we too busy?’ We discuss another question as well, ‘What are our responsibilities to others?’
Similarly, a person might benefit from the help of family and friends in their personal life, and from co-workers or employees in their profession. One person cannot do it all, whether the “it” in question is raising a family, maintaining a household, or running a business.
And yet, asking for help is too often stigmatized in our society. It might be viewed as a sign of weakness, or seen as a lack of commitment. Even if others might not believe that to be true, sometimes an individual may fear that is the way such a request will be taken.
Asking for help when you need it is crucial. But what happens if you don’t realize — or can’t admit — that you need help after all?
Do you know when you need help? How?
Related questions: How can you help? Are we too busy? How do you define success? What makes a good leader?
Nearly every successful legislative campaign I’ve ever fashioned has relied on the help of interns. I’ve needed them throughout campaign efforts too. Whether it be in brainstorming a tactile schtick that engages a constituency base in a building campaign or inputting supporters’ information into a database for use when an outpouring of support is needed, interns have played vital roles in advancing housing justice.
And for their work, they deserve credit. I want to thank all my interns over the past 26 years of professional advocacy. They made a significant difference in securing substantial increases in homelessness prevention programs. They were crucial in fighting off two attempts to cut the Renters Credit significantly. Passing a Tenant Bill of Rights would never have happened without their work. Getting the first $100 million to build affordable and supportive housing required interns to put in the hours for the win. And this is just a sampling of how committed interns have made sure Minnesotans stay affordably housed in quality housing — or get into housing in the first place. I am indebted to their work with me.
For personal problems, when I am tempted to ask for assistance, I first ask myself if I could manage on my own. Then I ask myself if it really needs to be done. If it really needs to be done and I can’t manage it myself, then I ask for help. I think people respect that.