What could be your greatest strength ??

“I feel that I'm not doing enough”?she said

“Why do you say so?”?I asked her

“Well, I feel that my peers at work are moving ahead in their careers, but I am stuck in my career, ever since I have come back from maternity”?she responded

These were the excerpts from a coaching session with a client sometime back

She is a senior leader in the consulting space

She had been on a maternity break and 6 months ago, she returned to work

Now, she was feeling stagnant in her job

Not just that, there were too many thoughts going in her mind

“Sometimes, I feel that I'm not cut out for the job. I'm not the right fit”?she said?“I want to quit”

“And then, there are those times, when I feel that I can do it. This is my space”?she said

“How is all this impacting you?”?I asked her

“I feel miserable at times. I fear that my job will be at risk”?she said?“And if I lose my job, that will completely devastate me”

“I feel insecure and a lack of confidence”?she continued

“What else?”?I probed further

She was silent for sometime

Then she said?“To be honest, there are too many things happening around me – motherhood, return to work, hybrid work arrangements etc”

“I don’t think I'm able to handle all this. That’s why I approached you”?she continued

And then she?relaxed

I could see her body energy shift immediately

Clearly, there was a lot happening in her life and clearly,?she was struggling

And up until this call, she had NOT spoken about it with anyone

She kept things to herself, either assuming things will improve with time, or that she did not have anyone to confide with

Either ways, now that she had said it out loud,?I could see that she was more relaxed

He situation may not have improved, but atleast she was able to talk about it, about her feelings

That was really important

I felt honored that she had trusted me to confide in

And I really admired her courage and her vulnerability to open up

Most importantly....

She was acknowledging her situation and had decided to do something about it

That was a BIG differentiator for me

Most of us struggle with different challenges in our lives, both personal and professional

But….

You don’t talk about it

You keep everything bottled inside

Just like this client before this session….

You either don’t have anyone around you with whom you can speak to ( without the fear of judgement ) or you are not able to find the courage to talk about it

Sometimes, you don’t even want to acknowledge your situation

You live in denial mode

You look the other way around, with the hope that somehow, things will get better in time

And sometimes….

You don’t ask for help

Either you don’t know who can help you or you want to figure out everything on your own, continuing to struggle in the process

Look….

Whatever your current situation is, whatever your challenges are....

Speaking about it and raising your hand to ask for help could be the?most important action?you can take -?for yourself

And I know that it may not be easy..

It may not be your natural style..

I totally get it

But remember….

Being vulnerable could be your greatest strength in such times

Think about it

And here are some questions to help you reflect :

1) Where do you struggle most today ? Pick up one personal area and one professional area

2) If you have not spoken about it with someone,?what is really holding you back ?

3) If you have to speak about it, whom would you approach ? When can you actually do that ?

4) What support do you need to manage the current situation ? Who can provide you that support ?

5) How can you ask for that support ?

Do share your experience as you reflect on the above

And if and when you have the courage to be vulnerable, drop me a note or book an exploratory call here (Book Your Call )

Till then

Stay safe and stay healthy

Eid?Mubarak and?have a great weekend !

Harsh

www.harshjohari.com