SELF IMPROVEMENT AND MOTIVATION

You don’t get bonus points for struggling. Only battle scars. When taking over a new job or project, or when the responsibilities or multiple deadlines push you to overload, it’s time to collaborate for the input you need. Weak leaders hesitate to ask for help, fearing others will see them as incapable. Strong leaders, on the other hand, focus on more strategic issues of accomplishing the mission, developing team capabilities and confidence, and gaining buy-in for overall success. So when you need expertise you don’t have, here’s how to go about getting it from others on your team or outside your area or organization: Strong Leaders Ask for Help Rather Than Struggle and Miss Strategic Goals and Timelines Forget the Face-Saving Balderdash You’ve probably heard this quip about banks: “You have to prove to them you don’t  need  a loan, before they’ll give you one.” Don’t try that stunt at home—or work—when you need help. Avoid all the long preambles about how you don’t really nee...

I think of myself as strong. I see myself as someone who can manage a lot of stress. Who can get a tremendous amount accomplished in a day. Who can work long hours and pull through in clutch moments. Who doesn’t give up in the face of problems, but works tirelessly until they are solved. I am a leader and most leaders I know feel the same way. We have to — our companies, our employees, our clients, our families — they all rely on us to pull through in the clutch. And we do. Sometimes, in our skillful mastery of pressure, complexity, and accomplishment, we can feel super-human. But then, on my way to dinner in New York with old friends from high school, my bicycle hit a pothole and stopped abruptly while I flew over the handlebars and slammed head-first into a parked car. Dazed, bloody, lying on the street, I couldn’t think. Some people nearby came to ask if I was OK, but I didn’t know. They asked if I needed water, but I didn’t know. When I eventually staggered to me feet, they asked i...