How To Say “NO” To Someone?
Few of us have the guts to say “no” when faced with a request. Such people are often termed as arrogant or selfish. There are some others who never feel brave enough to utter a “no”. They would rather accept a request that is difficult to fulfill and end up in a mess, rather than openly reject it. Are you one of them? Do you secretly wish to have the courage to say “no”? Well, if that’s the case, you need not worry. All you need to do is read through this article and follow these maxims to be successful in life without saying a “yes”.
1. Begin with a ”yes”
This may sound contradictory, but it really works most times. Whenever someone approaches you with a request, begin with a ”yes” . It will show the other person that you really wish to accept their request. As soon as you utter a “yes”, inform the person about the things that are holding you back from doing the job. Whenever you have to put forth an excuse, make sure you think about it before you blurt it out. You should be able to convince the other person.
2. Take your commitments into count
Before you accept any request, always take your other commitments into account. Don’t keep your other commitments aside, otherwise you would not only be able to give your best shot to their work, but also mess up with your other tasks. Instead of offering low standard work, it’s better to opt out of a job. When you convey this, you’ll not only sound honest but responsible towards your work.
3. Respect your time first
Many a times, you tend to count others’ time as valuable and miscalculate the importance of your time. Hence, you often tend to accept others’ request even if it means prioritizing their work before yours. In order to avoid such a situation, it’s best to respect your time first. When you start respecting your time, others will also follow suit. They would approach you only when it’s most required for you to do their work. This way, you’ll be reducing the number of requests that you get and the instances of saying “no”.
4. Postpone your decision
Postponing your acceptance of a request serves the purpose many a times. This way, although you’ll sound interested, you’ll be able to refuse the request later. When you inform of your refusal later, its impact reduces a lot. As a result, the other person doesn’t feel as hurt as he/she would feel in the first approach.
