The Flow of No

This week I’ve been spending more time with “No”.

With the family news we’ve had this week, it’s challenged me to:

Say no to anything I know I should already say no to… but kept doing because of convenience. Notifications that I should really leave to admin. Calls I’m invited to that don’t come with specific goals, that I should cancel at least until goals are set.

Say no to the things I never thought to but would benefit from… such as ways of doing things or rituals that became culturally normal in my company, but should be shaken off, or projects I should really cancel rather than just pause.

Once you get into the flow of No, you start noticing just how many more things you can say no to, in the spirit of focus and in service of the things that matter most.

Ways of doing things (e.g. my company is totally remote, and totally asynchronous). Requisite tasks (e.g. using software to put any new email sender into purgatory for one weekly touch). Cultural norms (e.g. living within a compound, setting your own hours, or not having Facebook).

You’re probably underutilising ‘No’.

Try using it more. It’s a superpower.