Saying “No” Will Improve Your Mental Health

Saying Yes to opening one door, means you’re saying No to opening a different door.

There is always a trade-off.

Saying Yes to over-working while working from home… Means you’re saying No to spending more time with your family and a good night’s rest.

Saying Yes to a client request you know your team can’t deliver in order to close the sale… Means saying No to setting proper expectations with the client and managing your teams workload effectively.

Saying Yes to sending your colleagues an email or Slack message after hours or on weekends… Means saying No to setting proper boundaries for yourself.

We live in a sales culture that makes us constantly feel like we have to “fit in” and “people please”.  We feel like we have to always say “Yes” for other people to like us.

Whether it’s with the buyers we speak with on a daily basis or relentlessly seeking the approval of our manager – saying Yes makes it easy to lose site of who we are.

We become obsessed with chasing who others want us and need us to be.

This is EXHAUSTING.

In this world we burnout. There is no room for what we WANT and what we NEED and it becomes impossible to be our authentic selves. The more depleted our wants and needs become – the less resilient we become to stress.

When this happens our sales performance and Mental Health decline.

Setting Boundaries for Better Mental Health in Sales

As Brene Brown states in her book – The Gifts of Imperfection:

“It takes courage to set boundaries”

Setting strong boundaries and saying No to things that others believe you should say yes to, makes you vulnerable to their judgments.

But within these vulnerable moments you also show strength.

In a world of Yes men and Yes women – the word No stands out.

“No” allows you to protect your Needs and Wants so you can remain authentic to yourself and genuine to others. Characteristics that your colleagues, managers and buyers will respect and admire.

Over the next few days – Be mindful of what you’re saying Yes to.

Ask yourself – “Is this what I really want or need right now?”

Make sure saying Yes – doesn’t mean you’re opening the wrong door and saying No to the things that matter most.

The things that truly make you happy and help you recover from a stressful day on the sales floor.

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About The Author

Jeff Riseley is currently the Founder of the Sales Health Alliance and Mental Health Advocate. With over a decade of sales experience – Jeff understands the importance of Mental Health in achieving peak sales performance.

Jeff combines his sales (Sales Knowledge Institute) and Mental Health expertise to improve sales performance through a mix of sales mentorship and mental health best practices. His strategies have helped sales teams improve their sales process, while helping them become more motivated, resilient and better equipped to tackle stressful events within sales.

He is currently delivering these strategies through on-site workshops, coaching and speaking engagements. To explore working with Jeff contact him at [email protected]