Sometimes as a business owner and especially as coach, people look up to you and admire your strength and achievements. This is then something you feel you have to uphold, but as many of us know, behind that success and strength is someone who is battling away trying to squeeze as much as possible into each 24hrs, being multiple roles in their business, learning new skills every day and making sacrifices. It means late nights or early mornings, a limited social life and there is a huge amount of pressure to succeed and keep going.
So what do we do when we feel like this? From my own experience, speaking to other business owners and the things I hear from my clients; we feel we only have one choice… to keep going. Is this the right thing for us to do or should we ask for help?
Yesterday I was feeling a little bit pressured, so I did something I don’t always do, being a coach I feel people expect me to maintain this persona that everything is great, which most of the time it is, I am living a full and happy life and loving the fact that every day I am living my passion and doing something I love, but this expectation can be a pressure. I did something I am not used to, I made the decision to reach out for support from my friends and fellow business owners, it felt a bit scary, but what I found was a huge amount of support, empathy and an ear to listen. After doing this I felt great, I felt supported and understood and I gained clarity and perspective, something I am always doing for my clients.
Another thing, which surprised me and prompted me to write this post, was that people saw this as a show of strength and it enhanced my profile as a coach. The reason being, what I was doing, was demonstrating and modelling to others, that it is OK to ask for help and support, by doing this, I was giving others permission to do the same, what better example could I give as a coach. Showing others and the giving them permission to ask for the help and support they need when they need it, which could be through seeking coaching, asking for support from their peers, friends and family or simply taking a break. I showed them great strength in my vulnerability and showed them that it is OK for them to do the same.
Until next time,
Emma
