Michael Hyatt suggests five reasons to cultivate the skill of gracefully saying no, lest:
- Other peoples’ priorities will take precedence over ours.
- Mere acquaintances—people we barely know!—will crowd out time with family and close friends.
- We will not have the time we need for rest and recovery.
- We will end up frustrated and stressed.
- We won’t be able to say yes to the really important things.
Of course, saying “no” doesn’t need to use (and often is best without) that precise word. For a number of helpful templates that can help you say no gracefully see Greg McKeown’s Essentialism, ch. 11.
For further discussion, see also “Inside ‘Yes’ is ‘No.'”