HELP IS KEY – You might think it makes you look weak or not smart enough, but the most successful people rely on others to help them do their jobs better.

Successful people are people who get things done. How do they get things done? They take risks, they think big, and they make and execute well-thought out plans. There’s something else they do that most people don’t think about: successful people ask for help.

Call it what you will—building a team, outsourcing, collaborating, delegating, etc.—it all amounts to asking for help. And that is a critical factor in professional and personal success.

Many of us are hardwired NOT to ask for help. We think it makes us appear weak. We think we have to be supermen or superwomen. We think we have to do everything ourselves. Whatever the reason, we don’t ask for the help we need.

We have to get over that, NO ONE got anywhere alone. You cannot and should not do everything yourself.

Too much doing, going, helping and giving can take a toll on us, physically, emotionally and spiritually. Most medical books attribute anywhere from 50 to 80 per cent of all diseases to stress-related origins (Stress Among Women in Modern Society, Charles C. Thomas Publisher, 1992). When we get really busy, we are quick to cut corners on the Big Three: sleep, exercise and healthy eating.

Asking for help is a sign of strength, not weakness. Asking for help clears space for you and frees your time and energy. It’s a smart strategy.