A few weeks ago I told everybody no.

I said no to the collaboration somebody wanted to do, no to the event somebody else wanted to plan together, no to the thing that sounded interesting but was not the thing I said I was going to do this year.

And I want to be honest about something. I kept waiting for it to feel like loss, like I was closing a door I might want back open. It never did.

It felt like I could finally breathe. The part of my brain that was always out there looking for the next thing, always keeping one eye on what else was available, finally got permission to stop. And when it stopped, I started going deeper on the one thing I said yes to than I had ever gone before because there was nothing else competing for the space.

I am not saying no is the answer for everybody. But I will ask you this.

What are you keeping alive right now that you already know is not the thing you said yes to this year?

It is probably not something bad. It is probably something you still believe in.
It is just taking up the space in your brain that should belong entirely to the one thing.
That thing you just thought of? That is the no that is waiting for you.

— Jesse Stanton