It can be hard to ask for help sometimes. I think humans in general are pretty prideful and want to be as self-sufficient as possible. We grow up in a certain environment, it becomes what we know, and we are wary of people telling us to do things differently. It goes against all the instincts that we have learned throughout our life to that point. Self improvement is very much about learning new ideas from people that are different than us and applying them to our own lives. In order to do that you have to be open-minded enough to listen and/or ask for help. This can be a hard thing to do for most people. Some would rather continue on their path, knowing that they’re missing out on some possible improvement in their own life, just to prevent themselves from having to talk about their current situation.
I see this behavior even in my own family. I’m pretty good with money and finances and I’ve offered to help a couple of my family members that could use some money tips to solidify their finances, but they’ve declined. It seems that they’re too embarrassed about the situation to want my help. I just don’t understand that at all. If you are struggling with something, why wouldn’t you want to make it better for yourself? What is the purpose of prolonging your suffering for the sake of “saving face.” Are you really even saving face in the first place? Not really if you consider the fact that I already know of their financial struggles, so I’m not sure what else there is to find out.
Pride plays an enormous role in this situation, as it’s a big part of the old-fashioned way of thinking. Instead of being humble enough to realize that everybody on this planet has different skills and abilities, and that you could benefit from them in many different ways, some let their pride get in the way of making their life better. There’s no wonder why they sometimes call it “foolish.” In order to truly evolve as a person, you need to recognize your weaknesses and incorporate ideas to strengthen them from people that are strong in those areas. There really shouldn’t be any embarrassment involved, and even if there is a little you can combat that by finding someone that you trust (close friend or family) that has those particular strengths.
We’ve talked about the importance of networking before, and this is a part of that concept. Networking to know people is an asset, but also using those contacts to better yourself by utilizing the knowledge they have is an extension to that. Part of being successful in our new world of social networking and consumer based decision making is to take advantage of our new found openness and take the steps necessary to improve our abilities within our social networks. That is the beauty of it all. As we start to break down the barriers of the old-fashioned way of thinking, we know that everyone has strengths, everyone has flaws, and by working together we can all benefit. The first step in that process is letting go of that little thing called your pride. From there, the possibilities are endless.
