This may/may not be a radical realization. But, isn’t it totally true?

The minute we put other peoples’ needs, desires, and goals ahead of ours is the minute our influence, impact, and income turns up. It’s not about us. It’s about them. At work and at home.

Here’s a career example.

Some years ago, my supervisor was handed a project; rewrite our team’s emergency response plan to align with the company’s new standardized format. He needed this done, yesterday. He also had more important fires to extinguish. And, formatting documents didn’t align with any of his personal or professional goals for our team.

Should I step in?

Now, I knew that editing a policy and procedures manual meant many hours rewriting and revising paragraphs, meeting with the project owner, and subjecting my work to an auditing committee for overall compliance. But, my boss was swamped. I was willing, able, and available. And I had adopted the #1 leadership belief.

It’s not about me, it’s about them.

So, after I sized up the situation, made sure that my efforts would make life easier for my boss, and assured myself that I could complete the work on time, moving forward was easy. I supplied the sweat equity and survived the ordeal (actually learning a lot along the way).

Some might mistake this move as an attempt to kiss a rear end. But, that’s an ineffective belief.

It was much more effective to put my supervisor’s needs and my team’s needs, desires, and goals ahead of mine. Doing so made the work, no matter how boring it was at times, more meaningful, fulfilling, and value-add to the entire operation. In addition, do you think this helped me Profit Profoundly?  (it did, in learning, and earning).

So, how do we discover what someone else needs so we can offer help, add value, and make it about their success?

Get the answer in Part 2 here.