Are you open to receiving?
I was on a cramped, mini plane from Calgary to Kelowna, sitting in row 7C.
It was hot and the A/C wasn’t working.
I had my headphones on and my laptop open, working away while other passengers struggled with their luggage in the overhead bins.
The man assigned to the seat across from me arrived and, placing a bag down, handed me his iced coffee—the cup was sweating. I removed my headphones and gave him a questioning look.
“Can you hold this for me?” he asked.
I smiled and nodded, “Yes, no problem.”
Once he was settled and had stowed his bag, he turned back to retrieve his half-full latte, thanking me before pulling down his tray and opening a book.
This simple interaction made me reflect on how effortlessly this stranger had asked for help, and how I often struggle with the same.
It was particularly timely as I had just finished facilitating a session on “superpowers” with a team I work with. A recurring theme from the session was that to truly leverage their strengths, team leaders needed to delegate more and stop trying to do everything themselves.
One team member realized that his reluctance to ask for help was not only draining his time and energy but also costing him financially by keeping him from tasks that could earn more.
We often think that we should be able to manage everything alone—or that we’re inconveniencing others. Yet, this mindset can make us bottlenecks in our own lives, businesses or relationships and prevent us from empowering others to step forward.
Yes, you can probably handle it yourself. But if you keep doing it yourself, you’ll always be the one who has to.
Opening yourself up to receive is a crucial aspect of leadership.
The man with the coffee on the plane didn’t hesitate to ask a stranger for assistance, a lesson we could all benefit from.
How would opening yourself up to receive more support benefit you?
This week, consider where you could use support. What tasks continue to drain your resources?
Maybe it’s time to start asking for help.
THE PROMPTS
Pause and reflect; These prompts are designed to help you deepen your understanding of yourself, recognize your strengths, and harness your inner resources so that you can lead your life, business or relationships powerfully and intentionally.
⚡ GET REAL
Reflect on the last time you needed help but chose not to ask for it. What held you back? Identify the feelings or beliefs that may be at play here. How does this reluctance affect your well-being?
⚡ GET CLEAR
Imagine the impact in your life if you were able to freely ask for help when you need it. What could this look like? How does it change your day-to-day at work and at home? Visualize the impact on your productivity and personal satisfaction of not doing everything on your own.
⚡ GET MOVING
Identify one small task this week that you can delegate to someone else—whether at work or in your personal life. It could be as simple as asking a team member to take over a small part of a project, asking for feedback on an idea you’re working on or asking your partner or a family member to handle a chore. Notice how taking this step could affect your stress levels and productivity.
⚡ GET RESOURCED
Make a list of people—colleagues, friends, family members, or professional services—who can provide you with support. Reach out to at least one person from this list and request their assistance with a specific task. Discuss how this collaborative approach might continue in the future, and consider setting up a more permanent support structure.
My husband and I have a relationship meeting on Sunday’s and one of the questions we ask each other is…. How can I support you this week?
The answer varies based on what’s going on, it could be planning who’s making dinner or patience with a busy week. Try this out, it’s simple and, it works. Let me know how it goes.
Hi brilliant friend, I’m glad you’re here.
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I’m Mandy Balak – 14+ years in Business, Executive Coach, Speaker and Creator of The RISE Conference, The Well Podcast and Community where I help high-achieving leaders and entrepreneurs level-up in life and business without burning out.
I send this weekly email on Sundays – whether you have 3 minutes or 30, give yourself the gift of pause to reflect and reset your focus for a successful week ahead.
Here’s your daily reminder that you are worthy, capable, and I am rooting for you.
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