Lesson Learned

Following my first Lessons From the C-Suite article, many of you shared thoughts and feedback. It’s clear the topic of mentors, sponsors and allies is relevant at every career and life stage, and I’ll continue to talk about it in this series.

Someone asked if I would have done anything differently in my 30+-year career. It was a great question that made me pause and think.

Frankly, the first thing that came to mind was a lunch I had with a senior executive mentor/sponsor very early in my career during which I ate off of his plate without his permission. True story with lessons learned, perhaps for another time!

In all seriousness, I’m not big on regrets. But I do wish I had learned earlier?that I could ask for help – that I didn’t have to do everything on my own or have all the answers. I think this is a particularly tough lesson for those of us who are First, Only, or Different. We’re used to making our own way, and that can make it harder to reach out when we could use a little help or a sounding board. I probably had mentors or sponsors along the way who encouraged me to reach out, but for whatever reason, it took to me awhile to really take that advice to heart.

...it's okay to ask for help. Asking for help is not a sign of weakness; it’s actually a sign of strength.

So with that in mind, I don't know who needs to hear it, but it's okay to ask for help. Asking for help is not a sign of weakness; it's actually a sign of strength. It doesn't have to all rest on your shoulders. There is no expectation on us to fly solo at any stage of our career or life journey.

As the fabulous Maya Angelou said, it may in fact be utterly impossible to be successful without helping others be successful. Amen.