“Take the first step in faith. You don’t have to see the whole staircase. Just take the first step.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
What are you afraid of?
Have you ever wanted something, but were afraid to ask for it? What held you back? If you’re like most people, you were afraid of experiencing rejection. You were afraid of hearing the word no.
The sad truth is, by fearing rejection, you are rejecting yourself. You are telling yourself no before anyone else has a chance to. You have already set yourself up for failure.
Think about it this way: If you ask for a detail assignment and the answer is no, you haven’t lost anything. You didn’t have the detail assignment before you asked, so your situation remains the same. It didn’t get worse, it remained the same. It only gets worse if you tell yourself, “See, I am a failure. I never get recognized in this organization.” But in many cases if you’ve been outperforming all your colleagues, the answer will be yes.
A byproduct of asking for what you want, and rejecting fear, is that you begin to feel more deserving and valuable. This directly affects your demeanor and you become more confident.
Just remember to always ask politely and in a warm and friendly way. Ask as if you’ve already been granted your request.
In life, the saying is true, how you do one thing is how you do everything, so if you are fearful of asking for things in your work life you most likely are fearful of asking for things in your personal life. So just try it, you have nothing to fear. Keep in mind that what you want, wants you too!
Action Item: Ask your employer for one thing that you want.
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