With the beginning of the 2015-2016 school year, the air on the quad is feeling fresh. Campus may look the same as it did last year, but many other things are slightly different. Last year’s seniors have been replaced with this year’s freshmen, and our new dorms are 5,000 times better than our old ones.
As we all know very well, this is the time of year we say outright lies like: “I swear I will not procrastinate on a single assignment this year!” or “Starting now, I’m seriously going to attend all of my professors’ office hours.” While statements like these are pointless and completely unrealistic (although, admittedly, we are all caught saying them every once in a while), using this fresh time of year to make small changes to the way we manage our time is reasonable, and it can be very beneficial later on.
We’ve heard it before—the habits we make in the fall will be the habits we’ll have for the entire school year. This is not only accurate for study habits, but also for general time management habits, like knowing how and when to say “no” to opportunities. Whether it’s hanging out with our friends when we should be studying for tomorrow’s exam or doing a favor for someone who won’t appreciate it, saying “no” is an incredibly powerful skill that can save us a lot of time and regret. Nonetheless, it can be tricky to master.
For a moment, let’s forget about everything the media has taught us about the “power of yes”, from Jim Carrey’s character in Yes Man to Sheryl Sandberg’s ideas in Lean In. Our generation has already mastered saying “yes”; perhaps we have even overmastered it. The author of The Book of No, Susan Newman, Ph.D., claims,
“People think they are being judged as selfish if they say no and believe they will be ousted from a group forever if they say that word,” she says. “While in some cases people avoid no because they don’t like to give up control, most of the time it’s because they’re avoiding confrontation.” Knowing when to say “no” is a challenge for most of us. To make it a little bit easier, here is a list of situations in which it just needs to be done:
1. When you want to avoid or forget about something else.
You should be studying for that chemistry exam you have tomorrow and you know it.
2. When you’re not sure if you’ll be getting as much out of as you put in.
Your friend wants you to drive her again, but she never says thank you and she never gives you gas money.
3. When you can think of more reasons not to than reasons to.
It sounds like a cool club and everything, but you are already a part of 6 organizations this semester plus you are overloading your schedule.
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4. When your only excuse for saying “yes” is YOLO.
Do I even have to explain this one? In the words of Dwight Schrute from The Office, “False. You live everyday. You only die once.”
5. When your only excuse for saying “yes” is FOMO.
You’re dreading another round of your friends in Facebook photos without you, but what you really want to do is just stay in and read your new book.
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Sources:
https://www.asaecenter.org/Resources/ANowDetail.cfm?ItemNumber=137297