I have a question for you – are you feeling a little all over the map right now wondering if you will finish the year where you want to be? So many people struggle with prioritizing their goals only to waste massive amounts of time.  In the words of the late Jim Rohn, who I shared the stage with on several occasions, ‘our goal is to make meaningful progress in measurable time.’ If you find yourself ending the day without a sense of progress and wondering what successful people are doing that you are not, then chances are you are missing out on the most important thing you can possibly do to finish this year strong and that thing is to say the word, ‘no.’
…..the most important thing you can possibly do to finish this year strong and that thing is to say the word, ‘no.’
The word ‘NO’ allows us to implement strategies that will streamline our lives so we can accomplish more of what we want and feel good about it in the process. Of course, this is coming from a recovering ‘yes-a-holic.’ As I look at my email inbox rife with requests for my time and the plethora of people who want to get on the phone with me, the question I ask myself is this, ‘does saying ‘yes’ to this request get me to where I want to be at the end of the year?’ If the answer is ‘no’ then so be it.
The word ‘NO’ allows us to implement strategies that will streamline our lives so we can accomplish more of what we want and feel good about it in the process.
I teach my students, and clients, that if they want to make a million dollars per year their time is worth $500 per hour. If a person is immersed in their own drama, story, and chaos, and they are taking up massive amounts of your time, how much is that costing you? You may be saying, ‘well Susan, I am not making that level of income yet,’ and my response to you would be this, ‘start valuing your time at the level of income you desire and eventually you will get there.’
I teach my students, and clients, that if they want to make a million dollars per year their time is worth $500 per hour.
For those of us who have surpassed $500/hour, I suggest taking a moment to do what I did in writing this edition of The 3 – take your goal annual amount, divide it by 52, and then by 40. This is your new hourly number. Start looking at the requests for your time through the lens of that number and see who merits a ‘yes’ and who doesn’t.
In my book, Organize Your Life, I wrote a chapter on the art of saying ‘no.’ In book signings, this is the key chapter that people tend to refer to and in this week’s theme, I have 3 suggestions on how to say ‘no’ to the things, and people, that are not in alignment with what you want, value your time at a higher level, and crush your goals for the end of the year.
Sound good?
Here are my 3 top ways to say ‘no’ and not feel guilty in the process. Successful people say ‘no’ to what doesn’t serve them and so should you.
1. You Deserve More Than I Can Offer At This Time
Recently, I was asked to beta test a project for a company. I would receive no remuneration and my back-of-the-envelope calculation put my time commitment including testing and feedback at over 10 hours. Based on my goal time value, this little project would cost me over $50,000 in potential earnings.
Here is how I responded:
‘Hi X’ – this project looks amazing and you definitely deserve my full attention. It wouldn’t be fair of me to participate and not give you 100%.’
The person requesting my time, thanked me for my honesty.
Voila! No guilt and the only time utilized was sending the email.
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2. I Can’t However I Know Someone Who Might
Okay, you are probably thinking this is horrible – that you are throwing someone under the bus. No, this couldn’t be further from the truth. There are people out there who would love to be doing the thing that you cannot commit to and here is a prime example.
In the above case, I knew that my friend, who develops APP’s, is a genius, and loves the company that had made the request, would be over the moon to be asked. They had not asked him. I made an email handshake and said, ‘I want to introduce you to X. They develop APP’s and would love to be a part of your beta.’
Not only did I de-commit, I also offered a solution. What they decide to do with it is none of my business.
3. Please Ask Me Again
Let’s say that it is something you might want to do in the future however it is not in alignment with your current objectives, using the ‘please ask me again’ strategy is perfect. You can say something like, ‘as amazing as this sounds, I am working on a project that I must complete by the end of the year. Please ask me again and I would love to carve out some time to participate.’
Your project may be releasing 30 pounds and this will cut into gym time. It may be increasing money or fixing your marriage. It is really no one’s business what the project is. All that matters is that it is important to you.
Alright my friend, I am looking forward to hearing your creative ways to say ‘no’ to the things that are not in alignment with your goals for the rest of 2017. Stop feeling so guilty and start saying ‘no’ from a place of genuine self-love.
If you have some creative ways of gracefully, and elegantly, saying ‘no, please leave your comments below. We love to read them. If this is helpful, please share on social media. Let’s help people start saying ‘no’ to the things that are not in alignment with where they want to be.
