Yes, You Can Say No 

We talked about stress in what other ways is health affected when you over-commit?  

1. Your self-image suffers.  When you find yourself doing too much, you wind up in that spiral of blaming yourself when it turns out you can’t do everything well. Never mind the fact that you can’t do everything and still do a good job at it. Instead, you start feeling more and more like a failure with each missed deadline. This leads to negative self-talk, low self-esteem, and eventually, some serious long-term damage to your mental health. 

2. You experience higher anxiety.  When there are not enough hours in the day, you find yourself frantic and always ‘putting out fires.’ This kind of anxiety is exhausting, not to mention can lead to anxiety and panic attacks if left untended.

3. You’re more at risk for depression.  When you don’t say ‘no’ to things you really don’t want to do or don’t have the time or talent to do, you’ll find you not only lack enthusiasm for the project, but after a while, a bleak mood and even depression will overtake you when you sit down to try to work at that project. The long-term prognosis isn’t good – untreated depression may even eventually lead to suicidal ideations.

4. You become resentful of not just the project, but of the people who asked you to join that project in the first place. This kind of resentment festers, and can even damage your relationships with others, again from with resentfulness, leading to anxiety and depression. It’s a vicious circle.

and one more to mention

5. It’s exhausting. When you’re involved in something you’d rather not be doing, it wears on the entire body, giving you not just a tired feeling, but leading to physical exhaustion. People have been known to experience heart palpitations and other very physical symptoms when they repeatedly run themselves into the ground. 

Looking at all of that, it’s not hard to see there arehealth benefits to saying “no”. Saying ‘no’ puts the control back in your hands, leading to more confidence, and a better self-image. By keeping yourself out of projects you’d rather not or simply cannot be doing, you avoid a many problems, including reducing stress and anxiety. You’ll sleep better at night and be more rested and alert for those projects that you wanted to do in the first place. 

It may be difficult at first, but with all that on the line saying ‘no’ will become easier.