Say NO and don't feel bad about it

I reflected on some of the major decisions I made last year. After a few minutes of deep reflection, it dawned on me that the most significant decision I made last year was to learn how to say NO. That sounds funny, right?.In 2019, I said yes to many things that eventually ended badly. Many people wanted me to be part of what they were doing, speak, write, present, etc. I said YES to several things to the point where I was getting lost and barely had any time for myself and my family. I said yes to speaking engagements I forgot to attend. I failed to send content for interviews because I was too busy apologizing to many people for my irresponsibility. Was I irresponsible?. No. I became irresponsible because I thought I must say YES to every request. In January 2021, I decided to start saying NO to things that were not my priority. In 2022 so far, I have been intentional in saying YES to a few things that are beneficial to me and NO to many things that are not necessarily bad but are a distraction to a life of quality.There is a tendency to say say YES to everything especially if you are a very resourceful person. Everyone want you on their teams and all your networks want you to participate in all they they do. If one is not careful, asides from the burnout that comes from saying YESES, you may be perceived as fake and irresponsible to the people who once respected you and your valuable contributions. Normalize saying NO to things that will unnecessarily stress you or throw your integrity in the mud. There are two types of NO's based on your preference.NO, I will passNO, but let me see what I can do in the futureNormalize saying NO with or without any explanation.Have a great dayOluwaseun David ADEPOJUJoin my NEWSLETTER