“If at first you do succeed … try to hide your astonishment.” – Author Unknown
A funny thing happened to me the other day on the way to the Post Office. I was walking across the parking lot when I made eye contact with a woman. She literally stopped dead in her tracks, looked me over, smiled and said, “You are looking rather dapper today, did you dress yourself or did your wife help you?”
Now I am one of the “older guys”, so I rarely receive comments about my appearance these days from members of the opposite sex, other than my wife, so I enjoyed my brief moment in the sun. Responding to her question I just smiled back and replied, “My wife always helps dress me.” Although this isn’t true in the clothing department, it does raise a more interesting topic for discussion.
Who dresses you for success?
In this context, I am not talking about your wardrobe or John T. Malloy’s famous book titled Dress for Success. What I’m referring to is to whom do you contribute your success? In business or in other areas of our lives, we all look to other people for advice, guidance and support. One of the keys to success in any endeavor is to surround yourself with people who will love, support and encourage you to go higher.
If you have read “my story” in our new book, POWER OF INSPIRATION: Dare to Be the Best YOU! you know that my first mentor was one of the people who played a significant role in my success over the years, along with many others. Whether it is a parent, teacher, coach, spiritual leader, boss, co-worker or a close friend, seek out people who will help you achieve your goals and offer advice and wise counsel when it’s needed most. And make those individuals a part of your advisory team.
That’s right, your advisory team. Much like a CPA or financial advisor on money matters, we all need a group of trusted advisors in other aspects of our lives we can rely upon for advice to help us reach our goals and achieve success, even when we don’t like their answers. Do you have a group of advisors today who you look to for guidance and support? Do you meet with them on a regular basis to obtain their input and draw upon their knowledge and experience on important decisions?
None of us can achieve our goals without the help and support of others. So, if you do not have an advisory team today who dresses you for success, I would encourage you to start making up a list of potential members, and then reach out to them. You will discover that life’s challenges become much easier to conquer when you have others in your corner who are there to help lift you up and guide you along the way.
Enjoy the journey!
John
COPYRIGHT © 2013 John Carroll