Sometimes You Just Have To Say NO!
When I got my first real job working for Burger King I was the happiest sixteen year old you have met. I was so proud to tell people I was punching the clock and getting a paycheck.
Naturally I wanted to be the best employee which meant never saying No. If they asked me to work over-time I would beg my parents to let me work. If it meant cleaning up some mess that no one else wanted to clean up, I did it.
I ran into a little crisis when my manager scheduled me to work on a Sunday even though I stated in my application that I couldn’t work on Sundays. I begged my parents but they put their foot down, there was no way they were letting me miss church for work.
When I started my first business, I wanted to go over and beyond for my customers. This meant that sometimes I got calls late night or super early morning to make special delivers.
I charged them for these mini emergencies but because I wanted to get more business, I charged a ridiculously low amount. I did this for a long time before a friend of mine sat me down and woke me up to the fact I was actually losing money.
The common theme in these stories is the fact that I couldn’t say NO.
Fast forward to the present and I’m living out my dreams as a public speaker, I get requests to speak at all kinds of event. At first I wanted to speak at every conference that would have me, but I have a family and get be gone everyday 
I had to learn pretty quickly how to be intentional about which ones I took, I have now determined that I’m set for this year and will not be taking on anymore events. This is a HUGE breakthrough for me, my personality wants it all!
So now I have to ask you, do you have trouble saying No?
There is simply not enough time in the day for you to do all the things you want to do, much less a bunch of other things people will ask you to do. If you have been in a battle with your schedule and have been wondering where to cut, maybe it’s the things you haven’t said No to.
It’s time to re-evaluate your schedule and see if you have been saying yes to things that you really don’t need to right now. It’s human nature to want to help and to want to do as much as possible but taking on too much could be keeping you from important things.
Saying No will help you with your dreams
Doing everything could be taking away time from working on your dreams. If you are still in a day job then you have to work on your dreams in any spare time you have. You won’t have any spare time to make your dreams a reality, keeping you from the life you truly deserve.
It doesn’t have to be your dreams; it could be that you have to say No at work. I always said yes to my boss to any overtime that was offered, it meant I made money but I missed out on being young.
I think working at that age is important and good discipline but playing with your friends, bonding and having those experiences are also important.
At your job you’ll get these requests and you have to decide what you can honestly do and fit into your schedule, be intentional with what you say yes and No too. You can’t do it all nor should you try, just be smart about it.
Saying No is hard and sometimes it hurts a little to say No to things that are worthy of your time but you have to determine what you need to say yes to at that moment. That’s how you can be intentional with your time.
Put this into practice this weekend, look at your schedule and be honest about what you can do and can’t do. I truly believe you’ll get a lot more accomplished.
Do you have a hard time saying No? What could saying No help you accomplish?
