Organizing Life, Home and Work
Don’t take “No!” for an answer.
By Mandie Crawford
Apr 29, 2005, 09:56

“Impossible!” “It just cannot be done!” “Absolutely no way” These are all too common answers to our everyday dreams and ideas. In fact we hear these sayings in our head long before anyone can speak them. Many of us abandon our creative thoughts after the first objection that we think of ourselves, before we are even rejected by someone else. Why is this?

It is because we are brought up being told what we cannot do, not what we can do. Think about a child. You may have one or watched as your parents or a friend raise one. Instinctively as if there is some unwritten rulebook, we make sure that our children learn what they should not do. However when it comes to letting them know what they can do, we are curiously weak.

So often we become afraid that the response to any idea or question will be negative. And no one likes rejection, therefore we bury the idea and chide ourselves for thinking such silly thoughts. Shame on us for doing so. Many great ideas are lost this way. Many people never reach their full potential because they think or have been told that it is impossible.

I love the quote:

“The man who is busy telling everyone why it cannot be done, is often interrupted by the man doing it.”

Recently I had the opportunity to interview a woman who is an electrician. She became an electrician because no one told her should could not or should not do it. In fact her parents were very supportive of her career path. ‘No’ was not in her vocabulary.

So how many times have you said no to an idea, before you could even test it out? Did someone laugh at you when you first thought of it and then a year later you found that someone else had the same idea, went forward with it and then succeeded? Do you realize that in every one of us lies the potential and the ideas that could change the world for the better, and make us a good living? What will it take for you to risk all and bounce the idea off of someone? You never know, it may sound silly at first, but a little tweak here and there, and it might be the million dollar concept that with a little brainstorming could be very successful.

So go ahead, dream a little. Take a walk. Think silly thoughts. Ask yourself, ‘what if?’ I have been known to have some different ideas and I am also known to think outside the box. I frequently bounce ideas off of anyone who will listen, and sometimes even feel a little embarrassed as I look back and ponder, “what was I thinking?” But had I not thought up some of those ideas and risked the ridicule to speak them, I may never have ventured forward with some of the successful projects I have undertaken.

I have another favourite saying that goes like this “Do not take ‘no’ for an answer from someone who cannot tell you yes”. (This as also great advice when working through beaurocratic red tape!) You can do it. Believe it, see it, and then do it.

Be bold, and don’t take 'no' for an answer.

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