The idea of sending a message in a bottle has always seemed a humble and mysterious cry for rescue from a time gone by.
But, honestly who among us doesn’t at one time or another need hope, help, or a rescue?
Would you rescue me?
When I’m by myself?
When I need your love.
When do I need your help?
These are the words of the OneRepublic, song Rescue Me, that I think to resonate with a lot of us as we live and work in quarantine.
In 2019, the miraculous rescue story of a family who became stranded at the top of a waterfall after they had set out on a hike in the California woods was widely publicized in the news.
Afraid, isolated, and desperate, the rescue was this family’s only chance for survival.
Many of us can relate to feeling isolated right now and desperate for some sort of rescue. Will my business survive this pandemic? Will there be opportunities for me on the other side of this? What will I do if I contract the virus?
It’s frustrating to be faced with a reality that looks bleak. It can be easy to give in to defeat when we feel trapped with no way out.
That’s why stories like the hiker family who survive despite the odds are so encouraging. They provide hope. If they can do it, why can’t I?
Well, you can do it by thinking as they did.
The first thing the lost hikers did to facilitate their much-needed rescue was appreciated and use what they had without giving up because they judged their meager supplies as not enough. They had a water bottle, a scrap of paper, and a pen. They fashioned a message in a bottle as a cry for help, a prayer of last resort in the form of creativity, and resourcefulness.
What do you have that you can use right now to get you from where you are to where you want to be?
The second thing they did was think through their plan. They wrote it out and sent a clear message with a date, location, and a specific request. “Send help!”
Do you have a plan written out? Are you taking responsibility for where you are and where you desire to be? Are you asking for the help you need?
The last thing they did was exercise faith and patience. They took action and then trusted the process.
For those hikers, the clear thinking, and ingenuity of sending a message in a bottle transformed them from victims to victors.
What is your message in a bottle? What do you need specifically to rescue you from where you are to where you want to be right now? Now use that insight to transform your circumstances, renew your hope and free you up for the opportunities ahead. You can do it! I know you can!
Cathleen Mancino is a Peak Performance Sales and Leadership Coach specializing in helping clients make impactful presentations that get clients motivated to make decisions! For more information or to schedule a private session with Cathleen, visit www.theslingshotmethod.com or schedule an introduction by clicking here https://calendly.com/mybestslingshot/15min