I spent the last three days in Atlanta working on my coaching business. One of the greatest takeaways for me was this:
Say yes to yourself
What does it mean to say “yes” to yourself?
It means to allow yourself to invest in yourself. How often do you invest in other people and their happiness, but not your own? How many times have you pushed and encouraged someone to achieve their potential yet you don’t say yes to your own growth opportunities? How many times have you spared someone else’s feelings just to have your feelings disregarded?
Saying yes to yourself means investing in your happiness, your growth, your dreams and your feelings. If you want something and you know that you know that you know you want it, it is time to say yes to you.
If someone you loved dearly asked you for something that was within your reach to give you would. Whether you had to move money around, borrow it or sell something you would say yes. But do you move money or schedules around to say yes to you? Are you willing to borrow or sell something so that you can say yes to you? Love yourself the same way that you love everyone else. Cherish yourself enough to say yes to you.
What are you saying to yourself? Do you give yourself permission to succeed? Do you say yes to your passions and interests? Or do you say, “No, not this time.” Or “I’ll just wait.”
I encourage you to say yes to yourself. Maybe not all the time, but most of the time. Think of something right now that you’d like to have. It could be something material. It could be an experience. It could be an opportunity.
Do you have something in mind?
Good. Whatever it is, just say “Yes.”
Don’t question it. Don’t make up excuses. Don’t talk yourself out of it. Simply say “Yes” and go after it. Give yourself permission to have what you want to have. Give yourself permission to succeed.
I often say, “Don’t tell yourself no. Let them tell you no.” This is essentially another way of saying, “Say yes to yourself.” Sometimes we’re reluctant to apply for a job or put ourselves out there in a certain capacity. When we refuse to give ourselves a chance we have basically just told ourselves no.
“No, I won’t get that job, because I won’t even apply for it.”
“No, I won’t buy a house, because I won’t even talk to a mortgage broker.”
“No, I won’t go on that vacation.”
“No, I won’t go out with that guy or girl, because I’m not going to ask them out.”
No! No! No!
We think that we’re protecting ourselves. Sparing our egos. The truth is we’re hurting ourselves. We’re closing doors we were meant to walk through. We’re living our lives telling ourselves no on a regular basis. Interestingly, we then wonder why our life isn’t more fulfilling. Can we agree to stop doing that? How can we tell ourselves no when we’re not even the decision maker? You’re not the hiring manager for that job. You can’t choose who other people date.
We don’t even have the power to say no to ourselves yet we do it all the time. On the flip side, we have all the power in the world to say yes to ourselves yet we rarely do.
If everyone else in your life deserves their hearts’ desire do you not as well? Of course you do. Say yes to your best life from here on out as much as possible.