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The ability to say yes and no is at the heart of our power to choose

• Discipline means choices. Every time you say yes to a goal or objective, you say no to many more. Sybil Stanton
• Every choice moves us closer to or farther away from something. Where are your choices taking your life? What do your behaviors demonstrate that you are saying yes or no to in life?   Eric Allenbaugh
• Assertiveness,  Say yes to life,  Self-confidence,  Busyness,  Effectiveness

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yes and no are short words that often require long thought

• The oldest, shortest words – “yes’ and no – are those which require the most thought. Pythagoras
• Buy yourself some time. Interrupt the ‘yes’ cycle, using phrases like “I’ll get back to you,” then consider your options. Auliq Ice

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Often we say yes because we feel driven into a corner

• Most of the things we decide are not what we know to be the best. We say yes, merely because we are driven into a corner and must say something. Frank Crane

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Often we say yes too quickly and no not soon enough

• Half of the troubles of this life can be traced to saying yes too quickly and not saying no soon enough. Josh Billing

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Therefore, we must learn to say no

• There are times when we must also be able to say no
• Don’t spread yourself too thin. Learn to say no politely and quickly. Jackson Brown Jr.
• Learn to say no. You don’t have to make everyone happy.
• Learn to say ‘no’ to the good so you can say ‘yes’ to the best. John C. Maxwell

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The ability to say yes is nothing without the ability to say no and vice versa

• Unless someone truly has the power to say no, they never truly have the power to say yes. Dan Millman
• Never allow a person to tell you no who doesn’t have the power to say yes. Eleanor Roosevelt

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Saying no gets easier with practice

• And saying “no” gets easier with practice, especially as you gain confidence that sticking to the essential is something that will have great benefits to you in the long term. Leo Babauta
• Practice

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Saying no is essential to find balance in life

• We need to maintain a proper balance in our life by allocating the time we have. There are occasions where saying no is the best time management practice there is. Catherine Pulsifer
• Balance

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Saying no is an important part of personal integrity …

• Have the courage to say no. Have the courage to face the truth. Do the right thing because it is right. These are the magic keys to living your life with integrity. W. Clement Stone
• The voice within is what I’m married to. All marriage is a metaphor for that marriage.  My lover is the place inside me where an honest yes and no come from.  That’s my true partner.  It’s always there.  And to tell you yes when my integrity says no is to divorce that partner. Byron Katie
• A ‘No’ uttered from the deepest conviction is better than a ‘Yes’ merely uttered to please, or worse, to avoid trouble. Mahatma Gandhi
• learning to say no can earn you respect from yourself as well those around you. Auliq Ice
• Integrity

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… especially when a yes would not be true to yourself

• A dishonest yes is a no to yourself. Byron Katie
• When you say yes to others, make sure you are not saying NO to yourself.
• It’s OK to say no even if you’ve already said yes, if you realize you weren’t being true to yourself. Lori Deschene
• Integrity

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Saying no is an important part of self-respect

• You know, to me saying no ultimately boils down to respecting yourself. Do you respect yourself? Do you respect your time? Because if you respect yourself, you’ll also respect your time. Celestine Chua
• Self-respect

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Saying no expands your ability to say yes and mean it

• Early on my journey I found developing the ability to say no expanded my ability to say yes and really mean it. My early attempts at saying no were often far from graceful but with practice even my no came from a place of love. Love yourself enough to be able to say yes or no. Susan Gregg
• Learn to say no, so your yes has some oomph. Ritu Ghatourey

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Saying no to one thing opens the door to saying yes to another

• Learn how to say no. I’ve learned that saying no to one thing opens the door to saying yes to something else. Krista Kurth

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Having the freedom and power to say no is important for healthy relationships

• Learn to say no. People worry that saying no is selfish. It’s not. Rather, setting healthy limits is important to having healthy relationships. Margarita Tartakovsky
• Men are much more willing to say yes if they have the freedom to say no. John Gray
• When you ask a man for support and you do not reject him for saying no, he will remember that, and next time he will be much more willing to give. John Gray
• One key to successful relationships is learning to say no without guilt, so that you can say yes without resentment. Bill Crawford
• Principles for healthy relationships

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Saying no to impulses is at the heart of self-discipline

• Self-respect is the root of discipline: The sense of dignity grows with the ability to say no to oneself. Abraham Joshua
• Discipline means choices. Every time you say yes to a goal or objective, you say no to many more. Sybil Stanton
• Why is discipline important? Discipline teaches us to operate by principle rather than desire. Saying no to our impulses (even the ones that are not inherently sinful) puts us in control of our appetites rather than vice versa. It deposes our lust and permits truth, virtue, and integrity to rule our minds instead. John MacArthur
• Self-discipline

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Saying no brings focus to life

• 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. 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. Steve Jobs
• Steve Jobs’s intensity was also evident in his ability to focus. He would set priorities, aim his laser attention on them, and filter out distractions. That focus allowed him to say no. He got Apple back on track by cutting all except a few core products. He made devices simpler by eliminating buttons, software simpler by eliminating features, and interfaces simpler by eliminating options. Walter Isaacson
• We believe in saying no to thousands of projects, so that we can really focus on the few that are truly important and meaningful to us. Steve Jobs
• Say no to everything, so you can say yes to the one thing. Richie Norton
• It comes from saying no to 1,000 things to make sure we don’t get on the wrong track or try to do too much. Steve Jobs
• Focus

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Saying no is essential for innovation

• Innovation is not about saying yes to everything. It’s about saying NO to all but the most crucial features. Derek Sivers
• Innovation comes from saying no to 1,000 things to make sure we don’t get on the wrong track or try to do too much. We’re always thinking about new markets we could enter, but it’s only by saying no that you can concentrate on the things that are really important. Steve Jobs
• Innovation

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Saying no is essential for leadership

• The art of leadership is saying no, not saying yes. It is very easy to say yes. Tony Blair
• Leadership

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Being able to say no reduces stress

• Being unable to say no can make you exhausted, stressed and irritable. Auliq Ice
• Stress

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Say no to what does not align with your values and priorities

• Concentrate your time and energy on your personal and professional priorities. Be willing to say no to everything else. Identify your values and align your life around what’s truly most important to you. Natalie A. Gahrmann
• You have to decide what your highest priorities are and have the courage—pleasantly, smilingly, non-apologetically, to say “no” to other things. And the way you do that is by having a bigger “yes” burning inside. The enemy of the “best” is often the “good.” Stephen Covey
• It’s easy to say ”no!” when there’s a deeper ”yes!” burning inside. Stephen Covey
• Values,  Put first things first

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Say no to what is not serving you

• We need to find the courage to say NO to the things and people that are not serving us if we want to rediscover ourselves and live our lives with authenticity. Barbara de Angelis
• After you have made your commitment to say no to what no longer serves you, you will probably be invited to demonstrate that you really mean it. Alan Cohen

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Say no to people and activities that waste your time

• Unless required for your work, never say ‘Yes’ to spending your time with someone or doing something they ask you to do unless you really want to do it. Learn to say ‘No’ to activities and people that will waste your time. Jerry Bruckner
• Time management

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Say no to misery and unhappiness

• Say no to misery, be happy and enjoy every moment of your life, no one can take your happiness away unless you allow it to happen; misery loves company and it’s always looking for a new victim. Kemmy Nola
• Unhappiness

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To know when to say yes and no, find clarity in your life

• You know what will happen with that kind of inner clarity and outer action? You’ll feel the way you want to feel more often than not. Decisions will be easier to make: You’ll know what to say no, thank you to and what to say hell yes! to. I bet you’ll complain less. You’ll be more optimistic, more open-hearted. It will be easier for you to return to your center in the midst of a challenge. Danielle LaPorte
• Clarity

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Realize that saying no is okay

• It’s OK to say no, and our world won’t fall apart because of it. It’s OK to say no if you don’t feel moved by an opportunity—no matter how exciting it might sound to someone else. It’s OK to say no if you’d rather relax than go out—no matter how many other people think you should be social. It’s OK to say no if you’d need to sacrifice your needs to help someone else—even if a part of you feels a little guilty about it. It’s OK to say no because you don’t have time—even if you don’t know right in this moment when you’ll be more available. It’s OK to say no without a detailed excuse—even if you feel like you should offer one. It’s OK to say no even if you’ve already said yes, if you realize you weren’t being true to yourself. Lori Deschene

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You have the right to say no without guilt

• You have the right to say no, without feeling guilty. Manuel J. Smith
• We don’t need to know or prove anything. Just to be, to take a risk and enjoy your life, is all that matters. Say no when you want to say no, and yes when you want to say yes. You have the right to be you. Don Miguel Ruiz
• It’s OK to say no without a detailed excuse—even if you feel like you should offer one. This doesn’t feel right for me right now” is a perfectly valid reason. Lori Deschene
• Guilt

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You have a right to say no without an excuse

• No is a complete sentence and so often we forget that. When we don’t want to do something, we can simply smile and say no. We don’t have to explain ourselves, we can just say no. Susan Gregg
• Excuses

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• I say NO to the demands of the world. I say YES to the longings of my own heart.  There is nothing I ever need to have.  There is nothing I ever need to do.  Jonathan Lockwood Huie

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• I say no to alcohol, it just doesn’t listen.
• Say no to drugs. That will bring the prices down.
• True, I’ve been a long time making up my mind, but now I’m giving you a definite answer. I won’t say yes, and I won’t say no — but I’m giving you a definite maybe. Samuel Goldwyn

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