You said yes.

You don’t know why you said yes.


But you did.

You said it.

And from the very moment you said it, you’ve dreaded it.



Because you already have enough on your plate. You knew it was full.

But you did it anyway.

You said yes.

We humans are a trip. Forever saying yes to sh*t that we really don’t want to do.



I mean, let’s keep it real …



You don’t really want to tip-toe around your own kitchen, while your slacker friend crashes on your couch for a week or three.

You don’t really want to pick your pal up from the airport at 11am, right smack in the middle of your workday. That’s what Uber is for.



You don’t really want to buy a new outfit and then spend half your day getting ready for that fancy party you promised you’d attend. You’d much rather stay home.


Why do we keep doing this?



I suppose, from a survival perspective, we say yes because we want to stay in the tribe. Saying no may damage our standing with the pack.

At the same time, it’s important to keep in mind that it’s almost impossible to thrive when you’re consistently compromising your authentic self just to keep people in the room.



At some point you have to accept the fact that saying no is gonna piss people off.



So be it.



You have to become perfectly okay with feeling the momentary discomfort of being the source of rejection.

Because the short-term discomfort of saying no to someone else is well worth the long-term gratification of saying yes to yourself.

Besides, if someone kicks you out of the pack for putting yourself first, you’re probably in the wrong pack.

This week I challenge you to say no.



If you’d rather watch the Super Bowl on your own couch, take a pass on the invitation to your co-worker’s party.



If you’d rather not have a weekday lunch suck 2 hours out of your workday, schedule it on a Saturday instead.



If your slacker friend doesn’t have a place to sleep … well, why are you hanging out with slackers in the first place?

Don’t get me wrong, I never said this was easy. Saying no is a practice that you’ll get better at over time. The first step is to start. 

On today’s episode, Brené Brown shows you how.

Source: The Power of Vulnerability: Teachings of Authenticity, Connection, and Courage

Enjoy today’s quote. Leave a comment below and let us know what you think!

Sean