Minute With Mallon: Implementing “Ask!”

Hi folks and welcome to "Minute with Mallon!"

Today’s Subject: Implementing “Ask!”

Something I Taught:

Last week the subject of this newsletter was about asking more and then receiving more.  Let's continue that conversation.

We all have weaknesses.  One of mine is mechanical.  I’m no good at fixing things when they break down – my mind just doesn't work that way.  Over the years, I've realized more and more that people have unique pathways when it comes to different kinds of skills.  Some are like rutted roads where things are super bumpy, and some are like superhighways where everything comes fast and easy.

My friend Dan Sullivan once said, "Your greatest opportunity for growth lies in your strengths, not your weaknesses."  I agree.

Part of my job as a coach is to help people realize when they have a weakness that needs to be fixed, and when they have a weakness that needs to be ignored.  While it's important to acknowledge our weaknesses, working solely on them can result in cultivating a strong weakness rather than in developing a true strength.

In my case, I work as a business coach and earn income.  I'm really good at that; it's a strength.  Then I pay part of that income to people who have the superhighway strength of fixing mechanical things when they break.  It's a good use of my time.

But other times, there are weaknesses that we need to work on to move forward in life.

I have a client whose greatest weakness is not asking for things he wants.  We were talking about it a week ago.  He told me that he feels like he's bothering people when he asks for things.

He told me, "I don't like to ask for help."  I asked him where this reluctance came from, and he told me that his mom was always that way too.  “She’s always had to have two or three jobs because she doesn’t want to ask for a raise or for a promotion.”  He told me that he felt like she had always been taken advantage of because of this.

So, we came up with this goal:

Every weekday, I will track at least one thing that I asked for that day, and I'll do this through August 31st, to build the muscle of asking, which will move me forward in life.

What you track, grows.  This applies to exercise, diets, or anything that you want to change.  Wishing is not a strategy.  Tracking is!

As my client tracks his asks daily, he will get better at the habit of asking. Over these next couple of months, it will become a natural and normal part of his life.

Which brings me to something I learned.

Something I Learned:

When I was in my early teens, I memorized this little poem.  When I first read it, I knew that it contained one of the keys to success that I needed in my life.  Here's a little challenge: how about you memorizing it too?  It's amazing what world-class thoughts can do when you plant them deeply into your brain!

"I bargained with Life for a penny,

And Life would pay no more,

However I begged at evening

When I counted my scanty store;

For Life is a just employer.

He gives you what you ask,

But once you have set the wages,

Why, you must bear the task.

I worked for a menial's hire,

Only to learn, dismayed,

That whatever I had asked of Life,

Life would have willingly paid."

--Jesse B. Rittenhouse

Something to Ponder:

"You don't get what you deserve; you get what you ask for."  Unknown

Something I Saw:

Sandy & I toured Furman University recently, and came upon this outside the stadium. No idea how they didi it!!!

Would you like to share this issue of the newsletter with some who could benefit from it? Just copy and paste this link:  Minute with Mallon!

Thanks for subscribing and very much appreciate you tuning in! See you next week!!

Robert