TL;DR
Practice the habit of asking for what you desire. The world favors those who develope the habit of courage to ask for what they seek.
Whom am I speaking to? Who is this going to help?
The meek, humble, goodie-too-shoes guy who does not want to hurt his self image or how others view him just by asking for what he really wants.
My Practical Experience
I’m creating this post more of an evidence of two of my principles:
- The world favors those who ask
- Take action, independent of what other people think of you
How did these principles come to light?
Let me first start by saying I’ve never really asked for things that I wanted in the past. Now, as I grow older, I start to understand and appreciate the value of simply asking for things.
On a plane trip, I was sitting next to a guy who was coughing. My options were to either “suck it up” and be uncomfortably seated for a 2 hour flight, or get “grow a pair” and ask if I can switch seats.
And that’s exactly what I did, I understood that I had nothing to lose by simply going up and asking the flight attendant, “Is it okay if I sit in the back of the plane?”.
Literally, the flight attended responded with, “Yeah sure, I don’t care”.
I don’t care. I think that’s part of the power of asking. Most people are living their lives at 5%–if you asked them nicely for something, the probability that they will give it to you will be high.
This applies to dating as well. Some women are bored, and would be happy to meet a guy who can provide her with a new and exciting experience that takes her our of her ordinary job.
Another example, on a different flight, happened when they were offering snacks. Get ready for this one. Instead of asking for my usual cup of water with no ice…I asked for TWO cups of water. I know, this is some deadly stuff (sarcasm).
But the point remains, if I really wanted two cups of water, why not ask for it? Sure, I’ve never seen anyone ask for two cups, but what’s teh worst that could happen? If the flight attendant said no, I would still be fine with one cup of water; if the attendant said yes, then I get two.
I ended up getting my two cups of water, without any sign of concern…as if it was a usual request, and nothing out of the ordinary.
Independent of which of the two cases happened, I still reward myself for looking like a fool and asking for what I truly wanted. In my eyes, I chose courage over fear.
Yes, and I know, this is such an easy, harmless case, but one that will compound quickly. It’s this seeming “easy” levels that people end up skipping, and consequently never practice the courage on the smaller enemies before going up against the dragons.
My next level might be asking out a cute girl I see in public, and then later asking for a promotion at work, and eventually asking for a $100 Million dollar deal.
Start small, practice, and trust the habitual system.
How does this opinion explain how the world really works in a way that accurate, wholistic, and realistic?
You can get most of the things you want if you drop your ego and simply practice the habit of asking.
Given your thoughts and opinions, what practical actions can we take?
Practice the habit of asking for what you want. Maybe even start with something you know you will get rejected, but reward yourself knowing that you are developing your habit.