Do People Really Have all the Resources They Need ALREADY Within Them?

When I first started developing my coaching skills I learned the belief that “people have the resources they need already within them to overcome their problems and achieve their desired outcomes”… but is that really true?

If that was true then why would someone need to seek out training? Why is mentoring so valuable? Why would we need to model others who are more knowledgeable, skilled and/or capable than us?

I’d like to propose an amendment to that belief which is:

“People DON’T already have all of the resources they need within them, but they have all of the resources to GET the resources they need.”

This updated belief is empowering for all parties involved and let me break down why.

For you as the coach/communicator/leader it takes the brunt of responsibility off of you for the things that you are not responsible for.  

For example, in a coaching context, it sets the clear boundary that your client is responsible for achieving their outcomes, not you as the coach!  It is not in your power to make them do the things they need to do so it makes sense to give that responsibility back to the client.    

When you release the responsibility of the client’s results from yourself and put that back in the hands of the client it can create many opportunities for the client to step up and become more empowered.  And actually it is a more accurate way of thinking because when it comes down to it… they are responsible for achieving their own outcomes.

The same applies for those in a leadership role.  If a task is someone else’s responsibility this belief will prevent you from micromanaging and/or doing other people’s tasks for them.

For the receiver of your communications there are many benefits as well. For one, it allows them to learn for themselves.  At the primary level they learn how to solve their problems for themselves but at a meta-level they learn that they can solve their own problems. 

This allows others to build confidence in their skills and self-efficacy in their ability to learn new things and solve novel problems they may be facing.  

Ultimately this belief allows us to place responsibility in the right hands for the tasks that people are responsible for.  Everybody becomes more empowered.

As the coach your responsibility is to coach, as the leader your responsibility is to lead, as the manager your responsibility is to manage and the other’s in those relationships have their own responsibilities within their roles.

Try this belief on for yourself.  Not only will you become a more effective coach, leader and communicator but your overall stance in the world becomes more empowered and so do those with whom you communicate.

Want to learn more empowering beliefs for coaches, communicators and leaders? Take my complimentary course to learn just that!

Feel free to share your questions and comments here.