Can other people help me change? Week one of four: gratitude and support.
Over the next four weeks we'll look at different ways those around you can help you achieve your goals.
Some people find it easy to ask for help and if that’s you then get cracking with the rest of this read. If you struggle to ask for help, take a moment to think about times in the past when you have been asked to rally round. In most cases, we feel proud that someone considers us worthy of assisting them; we give our time and energy with joy and feel enriched by the experience. We delight in telling others of our chance to lend a hand and bask in the glow of a job well done. When you ask for help, you give other people the chance to feel all of those things and everyone wins. Start with small requests until you feel comfortable and focus on the enthusiasm that people have to help you. This will give you the confidence to ask again.
Now that we understand how much other people like to help, let’s consider the ways they can get involved.
As a support. This kind of help can take many forms from the co-worker who comments on how much better you’re looking to a social media group where you can share stories with other people experiencing the same difficulties as you. To maximise your support network, think of everyone who makes it easier for you to make change and spend a moment thanking them. Be specific about why their help is important to you and what they have helped you achieve so far. If you feel you haven’t yet made enough impact on your goal to thank people then thank anyone who has helped you realise that change is important to you. We all love to be appreciated so thanking your friends and helpers will ensure that they are keen to stay involved and reinforce to you the importance of other people on your quest for better health. It will also give you ideas of how you would like to be supported in the future and open conversations about how this can be achieved. You’ll quickly find out which of your friends and colleagues are excited to be part of your change and may find that offers of help come faster than you can plan.
This simple act of gratitude will both focus your resolve and strengthen your support network.
