Go Get It?
When I grew up, my parents instilled a sense of need in me. I had to “go get it”, find opportunity, any opportunity, and say yes to it. Keep what you have, give what you can spare, and make sure before you walk, the way is firm before you go.
It is wise advice in the world they grew up in, especially as Black Americans. No is a word saved for yourself. Spare it for the worse of the worst. Yes is a word that gets you far.
But that “no” word is just as powerful
No is the s**t
No is a very powerful word.
It’s power lies in the way it denies.
“People think focus means saying yes to the thing you’ve got to focus on. But that’s not what it means at all. It means saying no to the hundred other good ideas that there are. You have to pick carefully. I’m actually as proud of the things we haven’t done as the things I have done. Innovation is saying no to 1,000 things.”
I can’t say it better than Steve Jobs there. While yes is the word that lets us go and attempt the world breaking things around us, saying yes too much doesn’t give us the chance to focus.
No is the word that allows us that focus.. It allows us to be proactive. It gives us the energy to make the impossible possible. It to the email that just came in means I can spend time on this blog post.
No to the last text means I can shoot this video. Denying that Facebook fight (bad conflict) means that I get the chance to get to the next great idea that will push my idea further.
So why avoid it
“No” means that you have to decide. Decisions are hard. “Yes” generally makes people happy, allows you to kick the can, and not think about things fully.
When you have to create priority, that’s when life gets tricky, because you could end up picking the wrong thing. People use that as ammo against others. Its awful, but it happens.
But that’s the price of ingenuity. It takes being uncomfortable to get there.
The next time you find yourself saying yes all the time, ask yourself these questions:
- What am I afraid of?
- What really happens when I say no?
- Is it worth cutting off the other things I have on my plate?
From the desk of Adam Thomas 