Why you should stop apologising for being all over the place.

As I’ve started working with more and more clients, I’ve started to notice a pattern.

At some point during the first week or two of our working together, my clients apologise for being all over the place. At first I didn’t give it much thought. But as it keeps happening I’ve been mulling it over to try and figure out what’s behind those apologies.

Here’s what I think.

I think people who run a small business (and perhaps also those who don’t) have convinced themselves that they need to be brilliant at everything. Admitting that they’re not and that they need help takes guts, and my clients have usually gone through that process by the time they contact me.

But then comes the bit where they invite me in to see how things really are. And then they get embarrassed that everything isn’t all ship-shape, and zen-like. And then they start apologising.

I get it. We all worry way too much about what other people think and have convinced ourselves that every Terry, Dot and Hilda we pass on the street is judging us.

But here’s the thing: if it weren’t for people like my clients, people for whom organisation and structure don’t come naturally, I’d be out of a job. I need those of you who find that difficult as that's how I get to use my talents. Without you, I couldn’t do the work that I find so meaningful and fulfilling.

Just as you need my help, I need yours. We're a match made in heaven! 

Here’s the thing: we can’t all be brilliant at everything. And actually, even if you were brilliant at everything there are only so many hours in a day, so trying to do it all yourself would be asking for trouble.

So embrace your strengths, acknowledge your weaknesses, ask for help when you need it and stop apologising!

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