When I started my coaching practice, more than nine years ago, I interviewed a lot of coaches around the country just to get a feel if I was making the right decision or not. As I was going through my interviewing process there was one coach that stood out. She was one of the top coaches in the nation. Her name was Heather. She really impressed me. Actually speaking to her, she was one of the people that really gave me the confidence to take this leap of faith.
Now, the first year in business was very, very difficult for me, unfortunately. Seven months in, I had a brother commit suicide and it really unraveled me, I was really lost. However, about two years later, I reached out to that coach that I originally spoke to that gave me the confidence.
I called her up on something totally different. Just a question I had. When I call her up and she picked up the phone, the first thing she said to me was, “Where the hell have you been? I haven’t heard or seen you for over year.” I explained, “Well, I had a challenge, I was in a bad place and I didn’t want to bother you.” When I said that, she lit me up like a Christmas tree. She goes, “What? You’re in a bad place and you were afraid to bother me. You have my cell number, right?” “Yes”, “Well, you need something. You call me. I don’t care if it’s 02:30 in the morning, I’ve got your back. You get that.”
When I remember that, I get chills just thinking about it. A person that I maybe spoke to three times, max, that I’ve never really got to know. That would authentically put herself out there for me to let me know that I needed somebody, she was there for me. Wow. It was that day that I made a commitment to show up in that manner for my clients. To let them know that I have their back, no matter what. As long as they show up in a manner that they earned the right and made a commitment in themselves to let me have their back.
Think about that in an organization. Everyone from top to bottom that has each other’s back. Here’s something else I’d like to share. I went to a group networking event afternoon for lunch a while back.
One of the gentlemen came up to me and simply asked, “How you doing Mike?” I said, “Awesome.” He goes, “Really?” I said, “What do you mean?” He goes, “You can’t always be awesome”, “Why not?” He goes, “Well, you got to have a bad day sometime.” I said, “Oh I do.” And he said, he goes, “Well, you would never know it.” I said, “You’re right. You would never know it.”
I proceeded to explain that I don’t vent across or down, I vent up. I have the Lord, my God, my universe. I have my band of brothers on Friday, my Bible study group. And I have my coaches to get my stuff out with. I vent up so I can get it all out, get clear, get back on my A game so I can be there for my clients and everybody else. And that’s the same way you need to be.
If you’re a leader of an organization, you can’t go into your office and complain to your team that you’re having a bad day. Honestly, they really don’t want to hear it. You vent up to your mentors, the people that you confide in, the people that have your back. So you get back on your A game for everybody else.
So I asked you, who’s the person that has your back, that has the authenticity to be there for you no matter what. To say, what needs to be said to get you back where you need to be so you can be on your A game. In addition, whose back do you have, because once you’re getting it, you want to filter it down. So everybody knows they have somebody that they can rely on no matter what.
Hopefully today I gave you something to think about because none of us can do it alone. And knowing there’s somebody in your corner that has your back, that’s the greatest feeling in the world. And it keeps you level, keeps you on your A game and it keeps you striving forward to be your best. To make your organization best, to make your team the best so you can show up as your best, day in and day out.
COACH MICHAEL DILL is an Award-Winning, Certified, Business Coach, Speaker, and Trainer. He brings more than 40 years of business and entrepreneurial experience in his leadership, team training, and mentoring practice. Michael’s passion is to both encourage and challenge business owners and entrepreneurs to become their best selves both personally and professionally to obtain all they want in their business and life. Businesscoachmichaeldill.com