Most of us need more help than we realize. If we are to become the person we were created to be, we need a lot of help.

Roughly two years ago, my Halftime coach reflected on what I had told him. He said, “Sounds like you’d like to encourage Christian leaders.” I felt a jolt of recognition. He articulated the noble purpose that would define the rest of my life. Since then, there have been many ordinary days: some pretty good and others filled with routine frustrations and discouragements. Yet through it all, I was adventuring toward a different and nobler calling.

Aiming for excellence is wonderful. Unfortunately, my desire to be recognized as successful, my pride, is a real problem. The last two years have seen big chunks of learning, fumbling dramatically in front of 20 other coach apprentices – which provoked deep awareness and months of remarkable discoveries, big and small. It wasn’t quick. “Inch by inch, it’s a cinch.”

A Milestone

Recently, I faced a major milestone in my self-designed apprentice program to become a coach. The marker was a tough national credentialing exam that assessed emotional intelligence, nuances of ethics, and eight core competencies.

The test was more difficult than I had expected. The first time, I was 1% short of passing. I signed up for a re-test and studied material that had eluded me. But to take it, I had to go through a national proctoring firm and complex technical adjustments to be remotely proctored.

Ever heard of my pride? Less than 5% of commercial / investment brokers earn a CCIM. 2% of CCIMs join the national faculty to teach other brokers who aspire to earn a CCIM. Besides that, I wrote a nationally endorsed book on income property investment, so I’m a legend in my own mind. I expected to earn an international coaching designation at the end of the test.

A Technological Challenge

The technical challenges of clearing the professional producing firm were intense and obtusely explained. No human help was available. I couldn’t seem to satisfy them. I was supposed to uninstall virus protection and a dozen other software programs. They required me to photograph myself, my identification, and the test space to show that I was alone in a closed room, to remove my watch, empty my pockets, and roll up my sleeves to prove that I had no crib sheets on my hands or arms before I took the exam. The proctoring firm’s AI had to control my computer.

That sounds simpler than it was for me. A dozen details had to be completed to AI’s satisfaction, and AI was no help. The chatbot told me my photographs were unacceptable but didn’t explain why.

I became unsettled. That is not a good space to enter an exam about nuances of emotional intelligence. This test was the climax of a two-year quest toward a new vision. AI and technological issues blocked my entrance to the exam. You can’t pass a test that you’re not able to take. I spent 90 minutes trying to gain access to a proctor to take the three-hour certification exam.

Help!

Electronic technology baffles some of us. My emotional state reduced my coping capacity. Luckily, three people who were both more knowledgeable and calmer than I was each helped me.

My computer guru stepped aside from another client to walk me through the process of uninstalling programs for the sixth time. We repeated processes we had completed two weeks ago.

My wife, Sandy, calmly helped me navigate the criminally difficult process of photographing the testing space to AI’s unclear specification. We couldn’t understand why AI was not satisfied with the photos that I had taken. I could not access a proctor until and unless AI granted access to the electronic test arena.

Both people were competent and patient and kept inching forward through the obtuse instructions. They had less anxiety and kept guessing at AI’s, almost-English, directions, till we cleared all the invisible hurdles.

Finally, I took the test, was glad for all the preparation, and passed. I was happy and humbled.

We all need help.

Most of us are our own worst enemy. Everyone has weaknesses and blind spots.

You and I already lean into discomfort and learn new things. To be more useful to others, we need to overcome more of what bores or intimidates us. At least I should learn to be nicer. An obnoxious person might not have gotten help while in an heightened emotional state.

Seeking excellence means crawling over and working around obstacles, taking on uncomfortable tasks, and accepting help. Mediocrity doesn’t require extra effort.

~

What about you? When did you need help to achieve something important?

To the extent that you and I want to live a life worth imitating, to model a legacy, what are we willing to change?

-o0o-

Terry Moore, CCIM, is the author of Building Legacy Wealth: How to Build Wealth and Live a Life Worth Imitating. Read his “Welcome to My Blog.”

Click here and find out how Terry and his team can help you make the most important financial decision of your next decade.