Recently I was staying in London ahead of running a workshop for a lovely client.
I’d popped to the restaurant next door to the hotel for a dinner for one. The restaurant was about 50 paces away. When I left the hotel the weather was fine. By the time I had eaten and was ready to head back to the hotel the heavens had opened. The rain was so heavy that I’d be soaked through the instant I stepped outside.
I was hanging out the door of the restaurant deciding whether to make a dash or wait for the rain to ease off and I got talking to another woman also hanging out the door, also staying in the same hotel who had popped out for dinner and wanted to get back.
We start chatting about the rain and ‘getting home’. I wished I had a coat and wasn’t wearing flip flops. She wished she had a boat. We discussed tunnelling under the pavement and secret exits via the kitchen. It was creative small talk!
Then we discussed ‘If only the restaurant had umbrellas for customers’. And with that we decided to ask because you never know.
We asked. And they had an umbrella that a customer had left behind and never claimed that they gave to us.
Hurrah!
We headed back to the hotel without getting soaked to the skin. And we felt super pleased.
The lesson in this story.
If you don’t ask you don’t get. Next time you think ‘if only….’ Consider asking for what you want. You never know it might just happen. And if it doesn’t, you’re no worse off for asking.
This applies to anything – not just umbrellas.
Coaching can often help you unpick your ‘if only’ questions and help you figure out what you want and ask for it. If you’re interested in exploring coaching options then drop me a line lucy@lucidity.org.uk.