Say Yes to Everything

How do you establish your presence in front of or alongside the people you’re working for and working with?

My recommendation for this particular lesson is say yes to everything.

Now, hang on a second… “everything”?

Well, if you’re like me, managing your time is already enough of a challenge. And beyond the day-to-day, you might think if you say yes to everything, you’ll be swamped, you’ll be overwhelmed, you won’t have time to do other things that might be more important than the things you said yes to.

Fair enough.

So let’s modify that a little bit. Go into each day, each meeting, each encounter with the mindset of saying yes, not saying no.

So if somebody comes up to you with a project, you don’t have to blurt out, “Yes, I’ll do it! Now, what is the project again?”

Have a mindset, of openness, of curiosity, of being willing to learn and being part of the solution.

A mindset of How can I do this? I’m going to share my talents and my strengths with somebody who clearly wants me to do just that, who needs me to do that.

Accept that compliment. If you’re asked to do something, it is because they think you can do it and do a good job on it. Or maybe they think, well, this will be a stretch for you. And that’s not a bad thing.

One reason I say “say yes to everything” is because this might include some things that are in your comfort zone and maybe are not in your comfort zone, making your comfort zone get bigger.

Think about the opportunities that are in front of you. Think about how saying yes, going with that positive, optimistic, can-do ambitious, motivated mindset, coming from inside of you can make a difference in your interactions with other people and your achievements, and being recognized as someone that they can count on.

Now, when you say yes to something you got to follow through and you can do it. You still have to manage your life and manage your work and manage your time.

And also think about this: what can you say yes to, internally…what have you been stalling on, hesitating on, and maybe lacking confidence in. Turn that attitude around, say yes to everything, especially when you’re the one who’s asking.

More about this tomorrow. See you then.