Ryan’s Journal: The Power of No
by Ryan Pew
I have small children who have deemed that it is acceptable to say no a lot. At first, we thought it was a bit cute, but my wife and I learned quickly that we needed to put a stop to it.
We would tell them to pick up toys or wash their hands, the answer was always the same, no!
We found the fastest way to stop that behavior was to send them to their room or have them stand in a corner. It works but it’s a lesson that has to be applied almost daily.
I sometimes wonder if, as adults, we find it hard to say no to things because our parents tried to get that word out of our vocabulary as children. Perhaps we get it drummed in our heads that we should say yes to things and all of a sudden we are overwhelmed with commitments.
I went to a Tony Robbins event a few years ago and one theme of his message was, “just say yes!” His idea being that if you say yes to things and eliminate your fears then you will progress in life. (This is a very distilled version of his message of course).
I came away from that event with two ideas. One that I knew I could walk on hot coals, because I did, and two being that I should open myself up to opportunities. If Tony saw me today he might say I was a lapsed disciple, but I did find the event to be worthwhile.
That leads me to my final point.
Are we over-committing ourselves and doing harm to our lives? Have we made too many lunch meetings, too many side hustles and too many extracurricular activities to really live life?
I have a successful friend who has five children. I asked him what his secret was as he always seems well rested and is able to exercise.
He said it’s simple, he doesn’t enroll his kids in a single sport or activity. They are not barred from them, but he just doesn’t encourage it, he prefers math and music for them to be involved in.
His catchphrase is, “Nerds rule the world, not jocks.”
Image credit: marc falardeau
