Do We Need to Be Selfish to Be Successful?
When we came into this world as infants, we were very focused on having our immediate needs met. Life was simple. With more “socialization”, we began to respond to those around us and our thoughts turned outward. Our parents, friends, and teachers were more interested in finding ways to have us please them than to have us please ourselves and we lost touch with whatever internal guidance system we had. We became more OUTER directed and motivated by the approval and disapproval of others. We started to look for ways to please everyone else and if we made a decision to please ourselves and meet our own needs first, we were labeled as selfish.
As women, we have extra baggage around this issue because our society has taught us that women should be nurturers. The assumption here is that we need to take care of everyone and make sure that they are happy and healthy and all their needs are met. According to traditional roles, the fact that everyone is happy should be enough to make us happy because that is our responsibility. If everyone is happy, we are doing our jobs well. Of course, if there is some time after all this is done, it is acceptable to do something for ourselves. Otherwise, we are SELFISH.
These limiting beliefs have so many implications for women in our society. As more and more women enter the workforce and are trying to keep their lives in balance, the stress builds. If we believe that we need to please everyone in our families, our relationships, our work place, what happens to US? How can we do all this and be successful at work too?
How many times at work have you taken on other people’s needs before tending to your own?
How many times have you taken on the work of others with the attitude that “If I don’t do it. Who will?”
How many times have you avoided necessary difficult conversations because you did not want to offend someone? You wanted to be well liked.
How many times have you not taken credit for your work well done because you want to be viewed as THE TEAM PLAYER. Perhaps you don’t accept compliments graciously.
There have been SO many articles, books, blogs done about the necessity for balance in our lives and how important it is to take care of number one. What about taking care of number one at WORK? What do we need to do to advance our careers and get credit for the work we’ve done? Maybe we need to be more focused first on our needs and our career path than meeting the needs of everyone else at work.
I would love to hear your opinion. Do we need to be more selfish to be successful?
Good Selling is Good Service. Good Service is Good Selling
What does good selling have in common with good customer service? EVERYTHING.
Exceptional selling and exceptional customer service require a focus on the customer. Focusing on the customer makes the customer feel important and valued and when they feel important and valued, they are more likely to become a customer and remain a customer.
How do you stay focused on the customer’s needs rather than your own agenda?
Identify Your Gremlins: What Holds You Back From Success?
What are gremlins, anyway? Gremlins are those nasty little voices inside your head that constantly put you down and remind you that in some way, shape, or form, you are not good enough. These gremlins are powerful little creatures that live and often thrive in your subconscious. Often, we have adopted negative beliefs about ourselves from our parents, colleagues, friends, enemies, or strangers we have met along the way. Gremlins become vocal just when they think we are most vulnerable and feed into our self doubt and fears. Though these inner voices may have started working initially to protect us from being embarrassed or from failure, their continued presence holds us back from reaching our maximum potential.
