Scripture is clear that we always can come to God, who is an ever-present help. We, however, often drop the ball when it comes to responding to asks. This episode stresses the importance of paying attention and responding to the effort people make to put themselves out there.
Timestamps:
[00:04] - Intro
[00:39] - Companies are becoming more human-centric and mental health is coming to the fore. More leaders are trying to take care of their mental health.
[01:44] - There’s a push to normalize the ask in mental health. There’s no question that we can ask God for anything at any time, although He might simply decline our request.
[02:53] - We can get disconnected from people so that, even if people come to us and say what they want or need, we drop the ball.
[03:37] - Don’t let the ball drop after the ask, and don’t assume someone’s grit will carry them through. They need someone to open doors, and how you react to their ask makes a difference.
[04:21] - Composer Aaron Copland went to bat for Leonard Bernstein. Their story demonstrates the difference it can make when someone who already has clout listens and advocates.
[06:00] - You have an obligation to at least listen for asks. Being intentional about helping is important because people don’t always know where they need to be. They need your expertise to sort it out.
[07:09] - Like all leaders, you have a choice about whether to help.
[08:16] - Prayer
[09:10] - Outro/what’s coming up next
Key takeaways:
As businesses become more transparent, leaders are working hard to fight mental health stigmas. They are becoming more willing to participate in activities that support their well-being or the well-being of others.
As part of current mental health campaigns, organizations are encouraging people to speak up and ask for help.
God is always willing to hear our ask. He pays attention to our needs and desires constantly.
It can be difficult to respond to asks and help others in the modern office. Your challenge, however, is not to drop the ball.
The story of Aaron Copland and Leonard Bernstein is an excellent example of a leader being responsive and helping someone else.
You have an obligation to look for the asks, not just because people are still getting comfortable coming to others, but also because your expertise might show you what might be good for others to try and do.
Follow God’s example of being a help wherever you can. Don’t assume that other people will make it just on their own grit.
Pay attention for indirect and direct asks, and follow God’s example of being a help wherever you can.
Visit patreon.com/FaithfulOnTheClock to become a supporting member of the show.
What’s coming up next:
Only a small number of brands can be considered “legacy” brands--most are lucky to last just a few years. Episode 13 of the podcast explores how to connect with your history and tell your story in a way that ensures multi-generational success.
Transcripts
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I’m coming through your earbuds or speakers again, people, and who is I? I am your host, Wanda Thibodeaux, and this is the Faithful on the Clock podcast, the show all about getting your faith and work aligned. Over the next 5-10 minutes or so, I’m going to talk about how God is an ever-present help, and what that means for your leadership style as you try to ensure good mental health for yourself and your team. Let’s get it COVERED.
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So as you probably know, companies are really starting to operate in a more human-centric way, and all I mean by that is that they’re trying to recognize that people are people rather than robots, that they have really complicated, interconnected situations, and they need a lot of different things to succeed. And within that, mental health is getting a lot of press. Leaders are trying to find all kinds of ways to support their teams, whether that’s paying for therapy options, offering flexible schedules--there’s a lot of good, really positive change going on. And as companies become more transparent, a lot of leaders are becoming more willing to try to take care of themselves mentally and to erase the mental health stigma. There was a survey back in 2018, I think it was, from Norwest Venture Partners, that showed that 1 out of 5 CEOs see a therapist now, about a third work with a wellness coach, and I’ll leave a link to the show notes so you can explore that a little more in depth.
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But the main thing I want to point out is that, through a lot of these mental health campaigns, there’s a big push to encourage individuals to actually reach out and admit that they need help. You know, we’re trying to normalize the ask, so to speak, which of course is a good thing. And when you think about God and how he responds to an ask for help, there’s never any question that he’s listening. Matthew 7:7 says, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.” Now to be clear, I don’t think that that verse means God’s just going to give you whatever you want, because sometimes we don’t always know what God has planned or it’s just not good for us. You know, I could say, “Hey, God, give me a million pizzas!” and God would probably say, “No, dude, I’m not gonna do that, you’d hurt yourself and get sick if you ate that much.” But it’s true in the sense that we can ask with confidence, and that there’s no limit to what God can give to you. We never have to worry about whether God is paying attention.
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In the office, though, or even at home or with friends, I think it’s really hard to do that. We get so busy, and we can have our own goals, and so I think sometimes we get disconnected from other people. And so they very well might come to you and ask for help with something, whether that’s guidance on an opportunity, you know, mentoring them so they don’t stress, they might actually come to you and verbalize what they want or need, they’re doing their part and being proactive, but then we kind of drop the ball. You know, we put off changing their schedule or we don’t make the call to introduce them to somebody, and so they just kind of languish.
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And so I really just want to challenge you as leaders or even new professionals to not let that ball drop after the ask. You know, don’t get caught up in the idea that their grit alone is going to carry them through, because I know so many people, I’ve tried everything I know and hit walls myself, and sometimes people really are pounding on the door as hard as they can and giving it everything, and they just need someone else to put the key in the lock and open up. It’s not just their effort that counts, it’s how you react to that effort that, a lot of the time, makes the biggest difference.
[4:21]
And since I’m a former music major, I always like to illustrate this with the story of Aaron Copland and Leonard Bernstein. Both were really well-known composers, Copland did a lot of symphonic settings of American folk music, was a really respected teacher, conductor. And Bernstein, who was a virtually unknown musician at the time, he connected with Copland, who thought he was pretty talented. But then what Copland did next pretty much guaranteed that Bernstein would be successful. He actually wrote a letter to a friend and advocated on Bernstein’s behalf, you know, said what his talents were, and asked the recipient of the letter to keep Bernstein in mind for any music openings. And Bernstein and Copland would go on to be great friends, but just as important, that advocacy, Copland’s willingness to speak up and go to bat for Bernstein, you know, to put it in perspective, given Copland’s clout at the time, it would be like Warren Buffett or someone like that going to the board at Berkshire Hathaway and telling them that you know a little bit about money and investing. And it absolutely helped launch Bernstein’s career, and he ended up writing all kinds of stuff, you know, West Side Story, Candide, On the Town, he conducted with the New York Philharmonic, the Metropolitan Opera, and he just became this massive powerhouse. And all because someone else who already had influence paid attention and went out on a limb to help.
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So, of course, you’re not going to be able to do everything for everybody. You know, you’re human, too, your resources aren’t always going to be the best. But I think you have an obligation, I don’t care what level you’re at or what your role is, at least to pay attention, to do your absolute best to hear the asks. And remember, those don’t have to be directly said, sometimes you can see it in somebody’s body language, or even in the data they bring you. And especially because people are still getting comfortable with being more direct about what they need, I think you need to be intentional about helping, even when the direct ask isn’t there. And if you’re a leader, and if you’ve got a lot of connections or experience, you have to remember, too, just like we don’t always know what’s best for us and God says, “Hey, don’t worry, I’ve got you, I’m gonna put you over here,” you have to watch and use your expertise to put people on the right path they don’t even know they should ask for.
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So the bottom line is, as a leader, you have a choice. Are you going to keep that door locked? Are you going to prioritize systems and products and your own path ahead of other people? OR are you going to try your darnedest to follow God’s example and be as much of an ever-present help that you can? Because I’ll tell you something right now, people absolutely respond to feeling supported and valued, and they don’t just hand that back to you and help you, they pay it forward to other people, too. So write the email. Change the schedule, have the heart-to-heart talk, make the program. Whatever it is, at least show others that your intent is to stay with them and make their lives better. It’s always better, even if things don’t pan out, that people know you tried to have their back and that they’re not facing it all alone.
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So let me pray.
God, Psalm 46:1 reminds us that you are our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. And even though we might not be able to give everybody everything the way you can, move on our hearts so that we always have the desire to help, to always open the door and be loving the way you are. Keep our eyes and ears open so that we don’t miss those nonverbal cues that somebody might need us, and give us the courage to step forward in support, even if that means we have to grow and face what’s uncomfortable ourselves. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
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I could go on and on about this--mental health is near and dear to my heart. But I gotta wrap the episode up. In the next episode, I’m going to be talking about what it takes to build a legacy brand, even when everything around you changes in a rapid-fire way. Right now, I’m gonna go try to do for somebody else today, be that help. I hope you’ll do the same. Connect with me on any of my social media channels, send me an email at taking_dictation@yahoo.com, or send me a message at patreon.com/faithfulontheclock. Let me know how YOU’RE working to support others and how that’s transformed something in your business or life, and until next time, be blessed.
