A mental habit that can improve your life

This surprising and underutilized approach to your success will set you apart from the pack.Steve Jobs is popular today for his big success at Apple. What most people don’t know is that he attributes much of his success to a mindset he developed at just age twelve.

In an interview with Steve Jobs, he narrated how at just 12 years old, he decided to call no less than Bill Hewlett, co-founder of Hewlett-Packard, just to ask if Hewlett could give him some spare parts for the frequency counter that he was trying to build that time. Hewlett willingly agreed to give him what he asked for and even offered him a summer job at his company to assemble frequency counters.

“Most people don’t get those experiences because they never ask. I never find anybody that didn’t want to help me if asked them for help,” said Steve Jobs.

Many of us either have no idea that we could benefit from help, or are too afraid to come forward because we assume this is seen as weakness, or a lack of intelligence. However, the truth is that it takes a strong person to ask for help. The most successful people in this world could not have achieved all that they have without a little help along the way.

The one piece of advice you need to hear as a current, or future successful person that it is absolutely acceptable and necessary is to seek help when you need it.

“You get in life what you have the courage to ask for.” – Oprah Winfrey

There are three simple steps for implementing this habit:

1. You have to understand that if your goal is to succeed in your chosen career, you definitely need guidance from mentors, experts, or professionals. The truth is that they have more experience that you need in order for you to arrive at smarter decisions. This is a quality that ultra-successful people have mastered over time.

2. Like Steve Jobs, know that there are inevitable instances when your resources whether tangible or not, would be lacking. So if you wholeheartedly believe that you are an achiever and not just a dreamer, you know for a fact that you need to ask for any available help.

3. Asking demands trust. The formula of trust is simple. If you want other people to trust you, you have to show them the same thing.

The habit of asking might not be formed overnight. In fact for some, it could really be difficult. When you are discouraged to continue the principle of asking, remember that in order to make a difference, you have to constantly move out of your comfort zone. Nothing in life worth achieving is easy, but it is possible.