‘When’ is key in getting support/ help. I have shifted more and more to instead of asking ‘should I…” to “when would I…”. ‘When’ takes it from Yes/No to focusing in on the conditions in which a yes feels right. It paints the picture of the situation under which you would get help.
I’m going to skip saying how we all need to open up to getting support/help more or saying all the benefits. Even that sentence makes me go ‘I know I know’. Instead…here’s what helped my decision to hire an assistant! And it’s going great!
What made the decision a strong yes was remembering an HBR article on time versus energy management. The article focused on that although it can be more straightforward to schedule our day by the clock yet we all know that there are times we fly through tasks because we’re in the right energy. It’s not because we are any smarter that day versus earlier in the week. It is harder though to trigger the type of energy we need for tasks because that requires a deeper level of self-awareness and discipline. Ever since reading the article a few years ago, I have leaned more into this idea and that’s where I’ve learned new things around setting up energy for tasks. Some thing have been morning routines, the Disney Strategy and removing tasks from my day that take me away from my zone of genius (Check out a Forbes article on zone of genius and Gay Hendricks for more on that).
By asking ‘when would I get support/ help’, it helped me to focus on where I am going next and where I need to focus now to get there…and what tasks to delegate. I love what I do and I want to do more of it. I don’t want to do things that I’m capable of doing but that pulls on my energy and keeps me from spending more and more time on what I love. …And hey, there is someone else that loves to do that work so let them do it (I am!). Consider when you would get help with that thing that is draining you. It might be sooner than you think. Just because we can do a piece of work doesn’t mean we should. Get creative. Find someone. Spend more time in your zone of genius.