a little word and a huge impact; learn to say NO

Since forward is the direction of success, if you want to be successful in life, you have to learn how to say “yes” to decisions that will help you live it forward and “no” to decisions that will cause you to stand still or move backwards. Knowing how to say NO and back it up is likely a more important key to success than knowing how to say yes. This is because the more success you experience, the more requests you will receive. What this means is if you get good at something and truly have a heart to serve others, your plate will become full rather quickly. When this happens, if you say yes to everything you will start to crowd out what’s most important to you.

In order to reach your goals you have to build some fences to guard and protect yourself so you can grow. This means discriminating between the things that help you get there and the things that don’t. Learn to say no to the people, situations, and commitments that do not move you toward your goal, that distract you, or that you simply do not enjoy. Be purposeful in your actions, learn to say no.

See a few ways that should help you develop the skill of how to say no to those things that might be good, but are not best for you.

No Complexity. Don’t make saying no too difficult. Ask yourself these questions. Does this fit my life’s purpose? Does this fit my current goals? If you don’t know your life’s purpose or if you have not yet set goals, it will be hard to follow through with this first idea.

No Over-commitment. Look at your schedule. Even if a good opportunity presents itself, you have to make sure you have some margins in your life. If your schedule is already full, you can only say yes if you are willing to say no to something else.

No Second Guessing. Once you make a decision to say no, move on. Otherwise, you will stress yourself out wondering if you made the right decision or if you missed an opportunity. In fact, you might end up being so consumed looking back and second guessing your decision that you forget to look forward and miss future opportunities that present themselves. Don’t live it back, live it forward.

No Guilt. Do not let other people’s plans for your life become your plans for your life because of guilt. If you don’t want to do something, say no.