The concept of asking for help is one I would wager the majority of us struggle with. Many of us associate asking for help with weakness, or insecurity, and it isn’t difficult to figure out why; social constructions have enabled us to confuse our perception of asking for assistance as pleading for help, and these two concepts are quite different in principle.
As I’ve mentioned a couple of times now, I recently started playing the game of rugby again after a 10-year hiatus. I’ve certainly forgotten a thing or two over the years, and while I’m hoping muscle memory will kick in sooner than later, I’m not going to lie; it’s been more difficult than I anticipated.
I am playing a position in the current league I’ve joined that I haven’t played since my very first year of playing rugby, all the way back in grade nine – lock. In a sense, I feel as though I’ve come full circle, returning to the position I started with. I got very used to playing 8-man after grade nine because I played that position for the remainder of my rugby career, so going back to lock, now, all these years later, has thrown me for one hell of a loop.
I was very reluctant to ask my coach and teammates questions because I felt embarrassed – I played the game for long enough, so I should remember, and furthermore, know these things already. The issue with not asking for help or clarification, though, allowed my confusion to grow even more pronounced, and it got to a point in which I was questioning most of the pre-existing rugby knowledge I had, perplexing me even more.
Asking for help is a sign of strength, really. Seeking out assistance is an indication that we wish to better ourselves, and I don’t think there is anything weak about that.
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