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In a world of change, where do you belong? The

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answer's clear, it's time to be strong. Mindful

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growth, that's where we thrive. With Angela's

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guidance, watch your best self arise. Transform

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with strong, reach for the stars. Resilient minds,

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that's who we are. No awakening potential, near

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and far. Angela, our strong, raising the bar.

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Welcome. to episode 10 of Transformation Talk

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in Powered Edge Season with Angela R. Strong.

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And I'm Angela R. Strong. And today we're exploring

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something that can make or break your transformation

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journey. Creating a strong support network. We

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all need it. Here's the truth that took me years

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to learn. Resilience isn't a solo sport. The

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strongest people aren't those who never need

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help. They're the ones who know how to build

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and maintain relationships that sustain them

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through life's challenges. We can't do it alone.

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You can't do it alone. I can't do it alone. So

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today, we're going to design your own personal

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support ecosystem. Most of my military career,

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shoot, for most of my life, I provided myself

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on being self -sufficient. I was the person others

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came to for help, not the person who asked for

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help. I thought that needing support was a sign

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of weakness and in the high stakes world I operated

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in, in the military, weakness could be dangerous.

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This mindset served me well in some ways, but

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it made me resourceful, resilient, and reliable.

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But it also left me isolated, especially when

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I was having crises. Suddenly, I was facing challenges

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that I couldn't handle alone. But I had no idea

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how to ask for help or who even to ask for help

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from. I remember sitting in my car after another

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difficult day, as I always did. And I felt completely

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alone despite me being surrounded by colleagues

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and family. That's when I realized that I had

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spent so much time being strong for others that

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I had never learned to let others be strong for

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me. And when you do that, people think you're

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always strong and that you don't need any help,

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so they don't offer any. The turning point came

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when my daughter came to me one evening. She,

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and she called me on the phone and she can hear

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the exhaustion in my voice. And she said, you

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taught me that we're strong together. Why aren't

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you letting us be strong with you? That conversation

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changed everything. I began to understand that

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building a support network isn't about being

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weak. It's about being wise enough to recognize

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that we all need different types of support and

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at different times. Your support network isn't

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just about having people to call when you're

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in a crisis. It's about creating a comprehensive

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ecosystem that supports different aspects of

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your life and your growth in your life. Think

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of it like a well -designed garden. You need

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different types of plants that serve different

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functions and thrive in different conditions,

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right? Here are the central roles in your support

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ecosystem. You have the cheerleaders. These are

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the people that believe in you unconditionally

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all the time. They celebrate your wins, they

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encourage you during your setbacks, and they

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remind you of the strengths that you have when

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you forget them. You got the truth tellers. These

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trusted individuals will give you honest feedback,

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even when it's hard to hear. They love you enough

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to tell you when you're making mistakes or when

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you're not living up to your potential. The mentors.

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People who have walked similar paths and can

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offer you wisdom, guidance, and perspective that's

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based on their experiences. You have your peers

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who are others who are on similar journeys right

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now, the same as you. And they understand your

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current challenges because they're facing them

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too. The specialists. Those are professionals

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like therapists, coaches like myself, financial

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advisors, medical professionals who provide you

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with expert support in specific areas. You also

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got the fun brigade. You gotta love the fun brigade.

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Those are people who help you to laugh and play

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and remember that life isn't all about work and

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growth. They're essential for preventing burnout.

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You also have the spiritual supporters. Whether

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it's religious or not, these are people who can

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connect with you on a deeper level about meaning,

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about purpose, and your values. And most people

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have some of these roles filled, but many have

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some significant gaps. And the key to this is

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to consciously assess your network and intentionally

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feel the missing pieces. Creating a strong support

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network isn't about collecting as many contacts

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as possible. It's about cultivating meaningful

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relationships that are mutually beneficial. Don't

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have people around you that are just taking from

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your cup and not refilling your cup. Here's my

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strategic approach. Step one, I want you to assess

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your current network map. I want you to map out

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who currently fills each role in your support

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ecosystem. Notice where the gaps are. Which relationships

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are one -sided? Which connections have you neglected?

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Step two, identify your needs. Be very specific

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about what kind of support you need most right

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now. Are you lacking encouragement, honest feedback,

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professional guidance, or social connection?

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Step three, be intentional about building that

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support. Support networks don't just happen.

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They require intentional cultivation. This might

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mean joining groups or communities aligned with

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your interests or your goals, or reaching out

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to connect or reconnect with some old friends

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or colleagues that you have. seeking out mid

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-tours and areas where you want to grow. Offering

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support to others, which often does lead to others

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reciprocating those relationships back to you.

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Step four, invest in existing relationships.

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Don't just focus on building new connections.

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Strengthen the relationships you already have

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by being more vulnerable, more present, and more

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generous with your support. Step five, practice

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receiving. This is often the hardest part for

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high achievers. I want you to learn to gracefully

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accept help, advice, and support. Practice saying

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thank you instead of I'm sorry when someone's

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helping you. Let me share with you how this worked

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for me. After my daughter's wake -up call, I

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started mapping my support network, and I realized

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I had plenty of people that I helped, but I had

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very few that I turned to for help. So what did

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I do? I began joining groups and support groups

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with people in career transition. I reconnected

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with old friends that I had lost touch with.

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got a therapist to help me process my experiences

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and building relationships with other entrepreneurs

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and other coaches. More importantly, learning

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to let my family support me instead of always

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being the strong one. The result wasn't just

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that I felt less alone. It was that my relationships

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with these people became so much more deeper,

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more authentic and more satisfying. for everyone

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involved. Let's practice the support network

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power calls. I want you to think about a challenge

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that you're currently facing, and I want you

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to take three deep breaths, and I want you to

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create space for this honest reflection right

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now. Now ask yourself, who in my current network

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could offer support with this challenge. What

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type of support do I need most? Encouragement,

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advice, practical help, or just someone to listen

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to me? What's preventing me from reaching out

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to these people? How could I offer support to

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others in my network? What new connections might

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I need to cultivate? Notice any resistance you

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feel to asking for help. That resistance is information

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about beliefs that you might need to examine.

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Building a support network is just the beginning

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though. So maintaining it requires ongoing attention

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and care. Here are some key principles to help

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you do that. Be proactive, not reactive. Don't

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wait until you're in a crisis to reach out to

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people. Have regular check -ins and celebrations

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of other successes and offer them support during

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their good times, building the foundation for

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support during those difficult times for you

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and for them. And make it mutual. because the

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strongest networks are built on reciprocity.

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Look for ways to support others, not just receive

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support for yourself. You can offer them skills,

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make some introductions to other people, or simply

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just be a good listener. Respect their boundaries.

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Not everyone can provide support all the time.

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Learn to read cues about when people are available

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and when they're not. And when they're not, it's

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okay. Have multiple people in each support role

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so you're not overwhelming any one person Express

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gratitude regularly Regularly acknowledge the

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support that you receive from those people People

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are more likely to continue supporting you when

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they feel appreciated and valued Everyone loves

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that Stay connected during the good times. Don't

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just reach out when you need something. Reach

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out in good times too. And maintain those connections

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during stable periods so that your relationships

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are strong when you do need that support. They

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don't feel like you're only calling them when

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you need something or when you're down. This

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week I want you to complete a support network

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audit. I want you to draw a map of your current

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network. And I want you to identify who fills

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each role and where you have those gaps at. This

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is your homework for this week. Choose one relationship

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to strengthen and reach out to one that you haven't

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connected with in a while. Or deepen a current

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relationship by being more vulnerable or more

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supportive to that person. Identify one new connection

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you like to make and then I want you to take

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a concrete step towards building that relationship.

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Remember that asking for support isn't a sign

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that you're not strong enough. It's a sign that

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you're wise enough to know that we're all stronger

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together. Your support network isn't about What

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you can get is about the community that you can

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create and contribute to, the community that

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you can build. Next week, we're exploring sustainable

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transformation, making change stick. Until then,

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remember, you don't have to carry your burdens

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alone, and you don't have to celebrate your victories

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alone either. I'm Angela R. Strong and this has

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been Transformation Talk with Angela R. Strong,

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the Empowered Series. If this video resonates

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with you, if you like it, like, share, subscribe,

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and I will see you next week. Mindful, bold and

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totally free