I feel that learning to say NO is a test to our will power and commitment to success. There is always someone or something that wants our time to help them achieve their goals and objectives. It can feel good to say yes at the time but when we are faced with not meeting our goals and objectives we ask ourselves. What did I just do?
Over the past six weeks I feel into the trap of not being able to say no. To my readers you will have noticed I have not published an article in over a month. It is due to a couple of things. I took a weeks vacation sailing with family and friends but I also over committed to some volunteer work. The unfortunate part about all this is I knew it each and every time. I felt the burning desire to help someone else who was in need. I broke my own rule of saying yes before I thought it through. When we over commit, it impacts many things both personal and business. We hear the term "Life Balance" It's not a myth. I understand life balance to be a good split between ones personal life and ones business life. When we over commit the time has to come from somewhere. Saying yes without clearly understanding the impact is dangerous. When busy people like myself do this we end up doing less than 100 percent of what is required to meet our own goals and commitments. It's that simple.
We also have to be careful of what I call time wasters. We get busy doing "Stuff" further down the list of "have to do". I feel this is really disguised as procrastination. We have friends and colleagues who drop into our lives venting about things that are not going well in their lives. Friends and family looking for some help or assistance in one of their projects. Saying no to friends and family is the toughest of all. I personally find the best way to say No, is to say. "I would love to help you. I am in the middle of a project with a close deadline right now that needs my full attention. I could give you a hand later in the week or for an hour on Saturday morning." Look at it this way. Your friend needs help right now. You do not have time right now. If they value your friendship they can wait until you see yourself clear to give them a hand.
Saying "No" takes will power. Saying "No" and meaning it, is a learned experience. Saying "No" and clearly explaining why builds your credibility. Saying "No" with compassion and understanding is an art. When we do say "Yes",we know it is for good reason and it has meaningful results for all.
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