Saying “no” is a challenge especially when there is decent money on the line.
I don’t remember a time where I have intentionally said “no” to an opportunity when I knew it wasn’t in our team’s wheelhouse. I will clarify and add that when I did say “yes,” we had the ability to execute it, but it wasn’t the type of task that should be the priority.
A lot of times, I forget that saying “no” is even an option.
The word priority came into the English language in the 1400s. It was singular. It meant the very first or prior thing. It stayed singular for the next five hundred years. Only in the 1900s did we pluralize the term and start talking about priorities.
Essentialism
What is your priority?
What is the priority for your business?
Are you doing things that shouldn’t be your priority?
Derek Sivers summed up this concept well:
If you feel anything less than “hell yeah!” about something, say no.
People (and companies) that work on the fringes are saying “no” quite a lot.
