Yes Means No

Polar opposites they may appear... but they are one in the same.

“Saying ‘yes’ to one thing means saying ‘no’ to another. That’s why decisions can be hard sometimes.” — Sean Covey

Yes and No are one in the same.

Every Yes to one thing is a No to another. And vice versa. You don’t think much about this truth except when faced with difficult decisions. Such decisions bring clarity.

Consider the wisdom of Steve Jobs:

“People think focus means saying yes to the thing you’ve got to focus on. But that’s not what it means at all. It means saying no to the hundred other good ideas that there are. You have to pick carefully. I’m actually as proud of the things we haven’t done as the things I have done. Innovation is saying no to 1,000 things.”

At any given moment, you are consciously doing one thing. What allows you to focus on this one thing is simultaneously saying Yes to that one thing and No to many others. In the next moment you may change your mind, but options tend to ripen and fall from the vine with time.

And there lies the difficulty of decisions in relationship with time. Every moment is a unique point in time. And in each moment, you are not the same person. The world is not the same world. Time has moved on.

According to Heraclitus, “no man ever steps in the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not the same man.”

So mind each Yes and No. Together they conspire to direct the course of your life. For what you think to be polar opposites are in reality one in the same.

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🤔 Food for Thought:

Have you recognized a Yes masquerading as a No?

What are you saying No to when you say Yes?

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⚙️ One Small Step:

The next time you decide to do something in the moment, you are saying Yes to this thing. Quickly list out the things you are saying No to. Does this change your decision?