The Upside

Are you good at saying no?

What are you saying “no” to in 2022?

…and HOW?

I’ve found that in business, “no” has been one of the hardest words for me to say, because genuinely:

I want to meet with anyone who reaches out.
I want to explore all opportunities.
I want to attend as many events as possible.

But saying “yes” too much over the years began to test my focus and my energy.

That’s why this year, I’ve committed to saying “no” to anything that isn’t 100% aligned with my very specific business goals and intentions.

🤷‍♀️ Yes, I may miss out on opportunities.
🤷‍♀️ Yes, I won’t meet as many amazing people.
🤷‍♀️ Yes, I may offend someone unintentionally.

But by saying “no”, I’m saying “yes” to serving our members and our wider community of professionals who gain the most value from our work.

If you have trouble saying “no” (as most people do!), try these tips:

✉ Create an email auto-reply explaining your intentions and goals.

🗓 Create a calendar booking link with only one opening per week for meetings that fall outside of your focus/goals; use this link whenever you have a hard time saying “no” to a meeting request.                           

⚠ Create firm boundaries in your schedule for how many events you’ll say “yes” to each month…and stick to it!

Here’s to focusing your time and energy on building value while saying “no” to anything that distracts from the impact you want to make!

Erin Halper

About the Author

Erin Halper is the founder and CEO of The Upside and the leading authority on independent consulting. Since launching The Upside in 2017, Erin has helped thousands of professionals transition from corporate life into consulting to achieve flexibility, autonomy, and a renewed sense of purpose in their careers.

Erin has been a frequent speaker at Columbia, NYU, Harvard, and Brown and has been featured as a leading future of work expert on dozens of podcasts as well as in Forbes, Business Insider, Nasdaq, Crunchbase and many more.

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