Life Skill: The Power of Saying “No”
The word “No” is spelt “N-O”. It does not get easier than that. It is the most easily understood word. Sometimes it means the end of your journey on that path. “No” means “No”. There is no need for a dictionary to decipher the meaning. The Greek, Hebrew and Latin versions of “No” still means “No”.
“NO” is powerful. Ask the job applicant, MBA applicant, student applicant, the guy that proposed etc. “No” hits like a ton of brick especially when you had high expectations. Most times, we feel so because “no” was said to us. Other times, we do not see ourselves saying “no”. But you can. Let’s think of it differently. You can use “no” to your advantage.
“No is a protective shield” says a Kenny Nguyen. Yes, look at it that way. Most times your parents said “no” to the things you asked for as a kid. Now you are doing the same to your kids. Not because you hate them but because sometimes what they ask for will lead them into more danger. “Can I go out at night?” “No”. You get my drift.
“The oldest, shortest words — ‘yes’ and ‘no’ — are those which require the most thought.” — Pythagoras
“No” sometimes leads to freedom. Saying “Yes” to everything that comes your way can lead to bondage. Hey! You have 24 hours in a day and you cannot possibly do everything that you say “yes” to. Something has to give. Take out time and say “no” and think of it as freeing up time to do something else on the priority list.
Most times people have a hard time to say “No” because they have not determined their values. When your values are known to you, it will be easy to say “no”. “You fancy a smoke?” “No”. Anything that contradicts what you hold dear when offered to you, is a “no”. Take out time to evaluate your values, priorities and relationships. When this is done, you can say “no” without thinking.
Saying “no” is an essential part of leveraging your time. If you have difficulty saying “no”, think about it this way. When you say “yes” to be somewhere that means you are saying no to be in another place. But when you have your priorities set, it is easy to say “no”. Remember, each time you say yes to something, you’re saying no to everything else.
Let me leave you with quotes that might be of help on this matter.
“One key to successful relationships is learning to say no without guilt so that you can say yes without resentment.” Bill Crawford
“The difference between successful people and very successful people is that very successful people say no to almost everything.” — Warren Buffet
“Let today mark a new beginning for you. Give yourself permission to say NO without feeling guilty, mean, or selfish. Anybody who gets upset or expects you to say yes all of the time clearly doesn’t have your best interest at heart. Always remember: You have a right to say no without having to explain yourself. Be at peace with your decisions.” — Stephanie Lahart
If you want more time, freedom, and energy, start saying no. — Anonymous
Learn to say no in situations where saying no can be difficult, where it could mean getting fired. Say no anyway, because it could lead you to greater opportunities. — Samuel Dash
“The art of leadership is saying no, not saying yes. It is very easy to say yes.” — Tony Blair
“When you say yes to others, make sure you are not saying no to yourself.” — Paulo Coelho
“Say no to everything, so you can say yes to the one thing.” — Richie Norton
“You can be a good person with a kind heart and still say no.” — Lori Deschene
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I hope I have been of help today.
You can check out my other works on personal development Asking, Managing Access In Relationships How To Ask, Authenticity and Now I Arise. If you enjoyed this article, please give it some claps and share it around on the socials! Feel free to leave a comment below! Please also follow me on Twitter @gabomin
