Mining Your Resources: An Exercise in Identity Evolution

In this Changemaker Challenge episode, Yoga Health Coach Marcia Wilson chats with Tania Milliken about how to plan for and approach conversations with networking resources who share our passions.

When we’re turning out passion into our career, we sometimes realize we need help, but we’re hesitant to ask for it. As Yoga Health Coaches, we sometimes have to shift our identity and lean into growing edges to mine our resources to get the help we need.

When asking for help from someone with whom you have a prior connection, lead with your heart rather than succumbing to fear. Knowing what their needs are and where they are coming from will help guide the conversation. Practice the deep listening skills we learn in YHC so that you can keep an open ear and an open mind to ideas they might have that might not have occurred to you. And while it’s easy to get caught up in conversation, in the end, we need to be really clear about what’s going to happen, what the next steps are, and what the timeline is.

We all have resources, connections in our communities; we have people who believe in us. We shouldn’t be afraid to step forward and ask for help in the interest of reciprocity and interdependence. It’s part of our identity evolution.

What you’ll get out of tuning in:

• The three questions you need to ask yourself as you try to grow your coaching business.
• How to approach potential resources.
• How to “close” a conversation with a resource.

Links Mentioned in Episode:

• Marcia’s facebook page
• Marcia’s website
• Tania’s facebook page
• YHC Have a conversation
• Watch the Masterclass NOW

Show Highlights:

• 0:00 – When we’re turning out passion into our career, we sometimes realize we need help, but we’re hesitant to ask for it. Sometimes it’s because we don’t want to “bother” others. Sometimes it’s because we’re not really sure who to ask or what to ask for. But we all of resources, people we’re connected to in some way, who believe in what we’re doing.4:00 – For Yoga Health Coaches, we sometimes have to shift our identity and lean into growing edges to mine our resources to get the help we need. Marcia has experience working with non-profit organizations, and it occurred to her recently that she needed to approach her health coaching business much the same way she would a non-profit: by mapping out a plan to get the word out about what she’s doing.

  10:55 – When asking for help from someone with whom you have a prior connection, it’s important to lead with your heart rather than succumb to fear. Knowing what their needs are and where they are coming from will help guide the conversation. Getting clear about the future state we believe is possible is also very important.

  15:00 – When meeting with our resources, it’s important to practice the deep listening skills we learn in YHC so that we can keep an open ear and an open mind to ideas they might have that might not have occurred to us.

  17:30 – While it’s easy to get caught up in conversation with like-minded resources, in the end, we need to be really clear about what’s going to happen, what the next steps are, and what the timeline is.

  18:48 – We all have resources, connections in our communities; we have people who believe in us. We shouldn’t be afraid to step forward and ask for help in the interest of reciprocity and interdependence. It’s part of our identity evolution.

Favorite Quotes:

• “If we don’t take the actions, and we’re not actually doing the work to make these things happen, they’re just not going to happen.” — Marcia Wilson
• “I love being in conversation, so if I get the tiniest little tidbit that helps me organically evolve what I’m working on, then I’m happy.” — Marcia Wilson