The Power of Being Available
Have you ever looked back on a season of your career and realized you were surrounded by people, but not truly connected to them? You answered the emails. You attended the meetings. You hit the deadlines. You carried the work home and brought it back with you the next morning. When someone asked, “Do you have a few minutes to talk?” you may have thought, I wish I did, but I really don’t.
Work can quietly train us to treat availability as a weakness. We begin to believe that being busy means being important. We protect our calendars like locked vaults. We say, “Let’s circle back,” until the moment has passed and the person has stopped reaching out.
Then something changes. A job ends. A department is reorganized. A title disappears. Suddenly, the calendar that once felt too full is wide open. And that’s when many leaders discover an uncomfortable truth: they wish they had been more available before they needed anyone else. They wish they had reached out proactively. They wish they had said yes more often when someone asked to meet. They wish they had built relationships outside the walls of their workplace, not because they wanted to collect contacts, but because they wanted to remain connected to real people.
Being available does not mean saying yes to every request, answering every message at midnight, or becoming the person everyone leans on until you collapse. Healthy availability has boundaries. It simply means people know they can reach you, and they trust that you will respond with care.
Sometimes being available looks like:
Making time for a short conversation when someone is navigating a difficult decision.
Returning a message instead of leaving someone wondering whether they were ignored.
Introducing two people who may be able to help each other.
Sharing a job posting with someone who might be a strong fit.
Checking in with a former colleague simply because they crossed your mind.
Listening without immediately trying to fix the situation.
These gestures may appear small. But relationships are often built from small things repeated over time. We often look for one grand leadership moment, the speech, the promotion, the major initiative. But people usually remember something much simpler. They remember who made room for them.
One additional note - job loss has a way of clarifying our relationships. If you are looking for work right now, I want to acknowledge how difficult this season can be. Searching for a job can make you feel like you are constantly proving your worth to people who may only spend thirty seconds reviewing your résumé. A job loss may change your employment status. It does not erase your gifts, your character, or the contribution you have made throughout your career. If you are looking for work, remember that your role right now is not to convince everyone to hire you. It is to stay connected, keep showing up, and let trusted people see the person behind the résumé.
To close - your influence is not limited by your title. It is revealed by the people who feel stronger after being in your presence. The title may open a door, but your humanity keeps it open. You may not be able to solve someone’s problem. You may not have a job to offer or the perfect advice. But you can make them feel less alone. And that, is not a small gift.
If these reflections are helpful as you navigate leadership, career change, or the everyday work of remembering your worth, subscribe for weekly insights and encouragement. We would be glad to have you in the community.
Feel free to share this message with those you believe would benefit.
Coach Ha-Keem
