The Yes People of Today are the Unemployed People of Tomorrow

Sometimes one of the greatest difficulties in business is saying no. Whether your boss is asking if you can have something completed early or a client is requesting a terrible idea that will surely deface the beauty of what you have created, our natural instinct is to make people happy and say yes. However, what needs to be realized is that the yes people of today are the unemployed people of tomorrow.

You’ve probably heard the saying, “Time is Money,” so treat time like money. If you’re asked to do something and you don’t have the time or resources, say no. Think of it as the equivalent of someone asking for your money. Certainly, you wouldn’t give them your money if you didn’t want to, so don’t give them your time. The same goes for bad ideas. Don’t go along with bad ideas just because of who proposed them. All too often I have seen upper management suggest terrible ideas that somehow garner overwhelming support from middle management.

“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. 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, Former Apple CEO

I recommend suggesting terrible ideas to your subordinates, see who actually calls you out on your bad ideas and fire the ones that don’t. If they won’t call you out on your terrible ideas, they certainly aren’t the right people to pick out the great ideas from the good ideas.