Just Saying No

Part of making space for myself to think big thoughts and follow my passions involves saying no to other people’s requests, even when they’re offering up seemingly good opportunities.

Just last week, I had to respond to two good requests with a “thank-you-so-much-for-thinking-of-me-but-I-can’t-possibly-squeeze-it-in-right-now” message. It’s hard to do, but it is oh-so necessary. I honestly cannot take on a single additional thing for someone else. In fact, I need to do the opposite. I need to scrutinize my current commitments and see what I can eliminate.

It doesn’t mean that I’m going to put on blinders and close myself off to all opportunities in dogged pursuit of my own goals. But it does mean I’m going to be very, very introspective when I’m tempted to say yes to something. Usually I’m just saying yes because I want to please someone else or earn their good favor. Of course it’s good to maintain good relationships with various people and organizations, but I can’t do it at the expense of my own life goals.