Last week, we emphasized the “power of pausing” and reflecting on how a particular invitation or opportunity would align with our current priorities and what is most important to us. When we consider the impact of this “yes” on our work, our family and other priorities and we can still say “yes,” then we can move enthusiastically in this direction. Join me this week as I provide three ways to be enthusiastic about your “yes”!
- Assess your comfort with your “yes.” Do you have peace about your decision? Are you excited? Are you dreading the project or opportunity? If you have said, “yes” and then you are second-guessing and really struggling with this decision, perhaps you really needed to say “no.” However, if you say “yes” and you are at peace, you are excited (and maybe even a little nervous because it’s something new), then you are able to be confident about your yes. At the end of last year, I committed to a project and was a bit “hesitant” about my yes. As I’ve continued into this year and have had many new opportunities, I am regretting that “yes.” I recently emailed the person I committed to last year that I would follow-through with my commitment; however, if they ended up not needing me, I would gladly volunteer to be taken off of the project. 🙂 Alternatively, I have had some other opportunities this year that align perfectly with my areas of greatest interest and expertise and I am genuinely excited about these “yes’s.” I have also realized that I don’t need to accept opportunities that are just “ok” because I am fearful there won’t be others that I can really say “yes” to with enthusiasm.
- Schedule time to devote to it. Once you say “yes,” block time on your calendar to work on this project or spend time with this person or group. I recommend scheduling out time as far in advance as you need to in order to protect your “yes.” If you say yes and then you don’t put the preparation, development, implementation and follow-up time on your calendar, you may find yourself struggling to maintain enthusiasm for your “yes” and move back into a place of feeling overwhelmed. You may also end up agreeing to too many things and unable to adequately follow-through with your commitment(s) which results in you compromising your most important relationships.
- Say no to other distractions. After scheduling our time, it’s important to commit to our scheduled time and say “no” to other distractions. As we emphasized in “power of pausing,” whenever we say “yes” we automatically say “no.” If we want to be enthusiastic and excited about our “yes” then we need to be cautious and confident in saying “no” to those distractions. If one of our our yes’s relates to quality time with family or friends, then we may need to put our cell phones in a different room. Or if we say “yes” to a project that takes significant writing time, then we need to say “no” to having our email always open and “dinging” at us!
What are you going to enthusiastically say “yes” to this week?
If you missed my Facebook Live on this post, check it out here!
If you or someone you know would like to stay up-to-date on my weekly blog posts, subscribe today!
