I understand the need to accept assignments and say yes to every opportunity. The need, though, rarely arises because the assignments and opportunities are good. Rather, it develops from a desire for approval, a wish to be liked and accepted.
That is not a sufficient reason for saying yes. In fact, it stands as quite the opposite. Saying yes to work when I neither possess the time or energy to complete it leads only to frustration and failure. I don’t deliver the work on time (unlikely, but it’s a possibility) or, if delivered on time, it appears only as a most lamentable effort.
Thus, I refuse to say yes to everything. It doesn’t serve people well. I do the work, but the work’s lackluster. It holds no verve, no excellence, no love. I might as well be clocking in and out. The work might seem fine, but I know better. I accomplished it in a less-than-cheerful spirit. I know.
It also fails to increase my approval rating. Oh, I might feel accepted and liked for an hour or so, but the sensation evaporates. I crave another hit of the approval drug.
Madness lies in that direction. I become increasingly unsteady as I do and say things to obtain someone’s approval. The knowledge isn’t theoretical; it’s fact. I have been down that particular road and know what happens to my mind and spirit when I traverse it.
I don’t want to go down it again. It eviscerates the spirit, and it destroys relationships, business and personal. Because of that, I choose something better. I opt to say no instead of yes to everything.
Image: A of DooM (Creative Commons)