Lately I've been thinking a lot about the "YES" mentality. We're often told that saying "yes" to circumstances and people who we'd otherwise say "no" to can be healthy, and open us up to a new world of opportunities. But saying "no" can be empowering as well, because in doing so we are eliminating circumstances that don't serve the greatest version of ourselves. We have to know ourselves in order to know when to say "yes" or "no."
"No" is a word in which a lot of people think it is a negative word. Looking at my life I have never really realized the power of "No" and how amazing it is to use sometimes. I am sure you have asked a friend to do something for you, but they respond with "I'll think about it" or "I'll let you know later" when in fact they really just want to say "No." The reason for this is because they don't want to offend anybody.
Most people look at the word "no" and think negative and "yes" as positive, but I don't really see it like that. I don't see things as being negative or positive. But we have to express how we feel. The word "no" shouldn't be something we need to be afraid to use because a lot of the time people will find themselves in a tough situation because they were afraid to say "no."
I have come to realize that guilt is a useless emotion, and a lot of the times that's where it all emanates from because we feel guilty when we say "no."
Person 1: "Can you do me a favor?"
Person 2: "No"
Person 2 feels guilty in this situation, so instead of saying "no"
Person 1: "Can you do me a favor?"
Person 2: "I'll think about it"
Person 2 says they will think about it when it fact they already know they can't do it.
When I have had the courage to just say "no" I have realized that it frees so much space and it creates a much greater inner balance because you have been real with yourself. Nobody is perfect and I have realized that perfectionism is a curse. A lot of people want to be the saint, the good Samaritan, but this will never happen because there is no perfection in nature.
We come into this world to live our lives. We don't live through other people. A lot of parents will want their children to live through them, but I say "No!" You must live for yourself.
"No" is a word of liberation just as the word "Yes" is. Don't be afraid to use either.
