When was the last time you asked someone for help? Can you remember it and what you asked for? If you did ask for help (and you are probably in the minority), what did it feel like? What was the outcome?

Since I left my job at Cisco, I have been connecting with a lot of fantastic people. I have 3-4 new conversations a week either through Skype, Google Hangouts or meeting in person. (I want to include Zoom in that soon). When I ask for help,  people are connecting me to both new ideas and other smart people. It’s exhilarating to have so many meaningful interactions and some turn into friendships and maybe even more.

Having designed and implemented billion dollar strategies for organizations, it is refreshing to not be following a PowerPoint plan but taking the first step of listening and learning. I have some really big, crazy ideas that I am working on but I am doing my research first and learning how to shift from having to be the “expert” to the “artist” and “creator.”

And while I was never trained to ask for help, — That was always seen as a weakness I had to unlearn — it is becoming easier and easier as I think of myself as a Connector and in the connection economy, asking for what you want becomes far more important to get to where you want to be.

If you are looking at ways to take charge, start telling yourself that you can simply do it and also ask for help.

I’d love to hear your ideas about how you are asking for help and what I can learn from it as I further grow.