Asking for Help

In my experience, employees often do not ask for help because they consider the issue is not important enough or are afraid they would display lack of product knowledge.  I found this blog post today and it is entirely accurate and should be read by all:

Today's blog post is by Christine Harrington, The Savvy Sales Lady. She is a facilitator for Peak Performance Mindset Workshop and a personal sales coach. Christine helps sales professionals develop their beliefs to improve their sales performance.

“Did you ask for help?”

A long pause ensued over the phone. Then I heard a sigh. “No, I never ask for help,” came the weak reply.

“Really? Why?” I asked.

“Well….” Another pause. “It’s a sign of weakness.”

“How did you come up with that belief?”

“I suppose as a child. My father always said, ‘Never ask for help.’ If you don’t know how to do something, then don’t do it.’”

Sadly, this sentiment seems common among clients in my sales coaching practice. This particular client was new on the job, new to sales, and had not been properly trained. The client acknowledged she needed help, but felt she was disappointing her boss by asking.

Is asking for help a sign of weakness or is it a strength? What’s your belief?

If you struggle with asking for help on the job, chances are your belief system is saying

• Asking for help makes you look vulnerable.
• People feel put out when you ask for help.
• Successful people never ask for help.
• You like helping others, but you don’t like it when others help you.

However, not asking for help can keep you stuck and can wreck your career."

Ms. Harrington is exactly correct.  Asking for help shows strength and a willingness to learn from people who have been around the corner and have made mistakes.  Asking for help should be a positive experience.  The most frustrating thing for me is for my salespeople to make the same mistakes I did--which could have been prevented by Asking for Help!