Help Yourself (First)

If you’ve ever flown in a commercial airliner, you are familiar with the pre-flight safety instructions.

They’re the same for each of the more than 45,000 passenger flights per day in America. Seatbelts, no smoking, floatation devices, exit doorways – you know the drill. What always stands out to me in the routine is the instruction for oxygen masks.

As they say, “In the event of a change in cabin pressure” (or as comedian George Carlin quipped, “when the roof flies off”), an oxygen mask will appear from the compartment above you.

The next instruction is key: put on your own mask before helping others. Why is that such an important instruction? Because we can’t help anyone if we’re suffocating.

Taking care of our own health is what gives us the ability to help others. This is especially true in business.

One thing is for certain: a struggling business doesn’t have that same leverage.

Businesses that are sucking wind are filled with panic, fear, and anxiety. There is a looming sense of inescapable doom that makes thriving nearly impossible. Sound familiar? If you take care of yourself, then you’ll be able to take care of everyone around you.

Profit is your oxygen mask.

Onward and upward,
Simon Trask