re·source

1. Source or supply from which benefit is produced.
2. Something that can be used for support or help.
3. An available supply that can be drawn on when needed.
4. Means that can be used to cope with a difficult situation.

What does resourcing have to do with my business and why do I need it?

When employees in a company have challenges, they call on their leadership or fellow employees to help.  When business leaders have challenges, they are often left with few alternatives but to go to formal training and hope that their problem is part of the course, or they talk to their spouse or good friends with hopes of some inspired wisdom.  Given the hit or miss nature of these tactics, many decisions simply get made by the “seat of the pants” method.  And while many great decisions have been made this way, it isn’t a big confidence builder nor is it very reliable.

Resourcing is just as the definition implies, it is a place or source where one can get benefit, support, and help, a supply to be drawn on when needed, a means to cope with difficult situations.  Business resourcing is proving to be one of the best outlets for business leaders to obtain tools and concepts that will lead to success.  When business leaders drop their worries about sharing too many “secrets” and commit to a service attitude, they can change the landscape of our marketplace.  This commitment to serving others and sharing knowledge, contacts, and networks unifies the business community and builds strength not weakness.

Seth Godin, the great marketing guru and blogger extraordinaire, says …

“You are capable of making a difference, of being bold, and of changing more than you are willing to admit. You are capable of making art.”     –The Icarus Deception

What he means is that the work we do can be considered a type of art in that it is done to touch others and to make a change for the better.  When we serve others by selling a product or providing a service, we are making art and art is meant to be shared. To share takes courage, insight, creativity, and boldness.  This is the stuff of those who would reach out to be resources for others.

While you may be thinking that you don’t need any resources, perhaps somebody needs you. You see, resourcing goes beyond simple networking and into training, coaching, and mentoring in order to build the best business community we can build.  While you may have few needs, others have many, and you have the benefits of your art to offer.

Be a resource, be a teacher, be a coach, be a mentor … be an artist.