#2: The resources we don’t have can keep us from seeing the ones we do have.
Bob had been having financial challenges for years. He got into trouble for unpaid taxes and, although he was able to keep an agreement for repayment by borrowing money from friends, things seemed be going from bad to worse. This financial predicament and the fears it created cast a cloud over Bob’s life and work.
A Talent Catalyst Conversation guided Bob to step out of his fears – not ignore them, but rather to see what he really wanted for himself and others. In response to the question, “What are your hopes?” Bob expressed a deep desire to create a powerful mentor/coach program for young people who were having a difficult time moving from childhood to adulthood without getting into trouble.
Fueled by something he could work towards, Bob gave his all to the project. By the end of his third year, he achieved some major results: he could afford an office outside his home and had helped more than a hundred young people and their families. Parents were bringing their kids to see him from hundreds of miles away. He had even started a training program for other youth coaches.
The last time we spoke Bob acknowledged that finances were still a struggle. He found himself in a cycle where there would be one or two good months followed by one or two lean months. He was proud of the work he was doing, but wasn’t sure what he could do to end the cycle of “being on the edge.”
As I often do when I work with people who find themselves stuck, I asked about his resources. He could think of many resources, but in each instance he stated that he couldn’t afford to do anything with them; there just wasn’t the money.
One of the things we spoke about was engaging a public relations firm to help him get newspaper and magazine articles, blog pieces written, TV and radio interviews. He realized that he was ready for that kind of media exposure, and that indeed, it could make all the difference, BUT there just wasn’t the money.
“Are you going to let the resources you don’t have, blind you to the resources you do have?” I asked. “Who do you know that could at least help you have a conversation with a PR person; just to see if they thought they could help you?”
“Now that I think of it, my friend Alice is helping people at a couple of PR firms.”
Amazing! Bob spoke with Alice that same day. She thought it was a great idea and set up an appointment immediately. She even thought it was possible that the PR firm would want to take on the project pro bono because it was such a worthwhile cause.
Alice, as a resource, had been there the entire time, just hidden behind money: the resource that he didn’t have.
Question: What amazing resources do you have that are hiding behind the resources you are sure you don’t have.
Jay, this is a great post and reminds me of some recent work I have done about perspectives and assumptions. I learned many years ago that we have a tendency to develop perceptions, especially when it comes to areas of fields of expertise that are not familiar to us. One of my assumptions was that getting into a newspaper of on a radio show was only possible in two ways:
1. Something horrible and fantastic happened and the reporters decide to write an article or a story about it.
2. Companies with money would pay the paper, magazine or radio/TV- show to place an advertisement.
As a variant I knew that there were small certified ads that I could place to sell a car or furniture or offer an apartment. In line with your story about Bob, I assumed it would take money to get into the media. A friend told me that the papers and other media outlets always look for interesting content and aren’t averse to be offered content. One just needs to take the first step.
Taking the first step, taking action and beginning the change process is part of our talent catalyst conversation. It is also a big part of successful coaching. I applaud you for pointing out that we have more resources around us than we think and invite readers to avoid assumptions, research the facts, and involve your fulfillment team to find solutions that allow you to realize your deepest hopes and dreams.
This is simply so true. Working as a coach I often come across clients that focus on the “have nots” rather than the “haves”. As a coach I find myself working with people to empower them switch back to the “current positive” rather than “future negative”. Slowing down the thinking and refocusing is a key way of doing this. The “Take Charge Of Your Talent” framework brings a set of very valuable tools for doing just this.