How to Say ‘No’ Without Seeming Selfish

The word ‘No’ is one of the toughest words to say. It can hurt, offend and anger. Even so, we need to know when to say ‘No’. If not, we will sacrifice our own well-being if we say 'Yes' and do things we don’t want to do.

We are taught to think of others and not to be selfish. We are also taught to put other people’s needs before our own. But if we do that, who will be taking care of our needs?

So how do we say 'No' without seeming like a selfish prick?

Number one, offer alternatives. If your friend wants to visit at 12 a.m. and you are exhausted, tell her so and offer another day to visit.

Number two, voice your discomfort. People rarely push you to do something if you are brave enough to say that you are not comfortable doing it. It takes courage to admit that we are not at ease doing something. Most people will respect you for being frank about it.

Number three, explain why you are saying 'No'. If you don’t want to lend your friend money, for example, explain that you can’t afford it, or on a budget. If your friend is reasonable, he won’t push you.

So these are 3 simple tips for you to start saying 'No' and protect your boundaries. Your feelings and opinions are as valid as others’. You deserve to feel good and live the kind of life you want to lead.

Have a good week!

6 Easy Ways to Start a Tech Detox with Your Mobile Phone for a Calmer and Less Anxious You

A technology detox once a week (or everyday!) can do wonders for us busy individuals – it makes us more present and enjoy the current moment, makes us less anxious and helps us feel calmer and less frantic.

If we are used to replying calls and messages instantly, weaning off technology might make us even more anxious. The trick is to try tech detoxing once a week and progress slowly. I’m not advocating you to be 100% free of technology, but reducing your interaction with a device from 95% of the time to 60% of the time (or lower) will make you feel good mentally.

6 Ways to Start a Tech Detox to be More Present, Have a Clearer Mind, Enjoy Life and Experience Less Anxiety 

1. Switch off tech gadgets 60 minutes before bedtime. Turn off your mobile phone, laptops and TV an hour bedtime. What can you do during this time? Enjoy a hot shower, journal, talk to your partner, savour a cup of hot tea, meditate, stare into the distance… you name it. A more relaxed mind = better sleep.
2. Check your messages at hourly intervals only. Should you be free during a particular day with no urgent matters, check your Whatsapp messages or text messages every hour only, for example, at 2pm, 3pm and so on. With this tactic, you will be in control instead of letting your gadget control you.
3. Switch your phone to vibrate mode the entire day. Having your phone beep and ring -sometimes repeatedly – at unexpected times of the day can set off anxiety. Let it be on vibrate mode and check as and when you wish to do so.
4. Mute unnecessary Whatsapp groups. This is a no-brainer for some of us. We are sometimes pressured to be included in certain Whatsapp groups which notify us at unearthly hours with irrelevant information. Mute these groups, or if you are gutsy enough, quit those groups.
5. You don’t have to reply to every text message or email. Yes, this line says it all. You might have friends or family members who love chatting via Whatsapp, but once it feels draining to reply them, leave them be and reply those messages later or not all.
6. You don’t have to answer every call – you can call back later. This is a good tactic to ensure that you have less anxiety. If you don’t feel like answering someone’s call at that point of time, let your phone ring and call him or her back later when you are in a better frame of mind.

 

Last words

You are not obliged to be at someone’s beck and call, but unfortunately, society has the idea that you are supposed to answer calls and messages instantly or ASAP. You have the liberty to choose when and where you wish to answer your calls and texts. It’s not easy to do so, but once you have set your tech boundaries, your loved ones will get used to it and hopefully, respect those boundaries.

All the best.

10 Ideas for an Effective Morning Ritual

The most successful people on this planet advocate having a morning ritual and waking up as early as 5am.

Morning ‘rituals’ turn us off because it has a joyless, going-through-the-motions connotation to it. And waking up early is painful enough.

Morning routines and rituals are usually for adults, but they can be tweaked for your children as well.

Morning rituals are great because..

They give us the much-needed alone time before distractions start entering our day.

Rituals make us look forward to getting out of bed in the morning.

We have the luxury of having more time to accomplish our tasks for the day.

It instills discipline in children and teens

I had the experience of waking up at 530am one morning and wasn’t able to go back to sleep. Boy, I’ve never felt so accomplished in my life.

I made a smoothie, savoured it in the quiet of the morning, did light exercises, enjoyed the sunrise, took a hot shower, managed to meditate for 10 minutes and by 730am, I was fresh and in front of my laptop – ready to start cracking on work.

Needless to say, I completed so many things that day before lunch came around.

Everyone’s family situation is unique,thus, my morning ritual might not work for you.

Below is a list to help you and your family get started.

10 Ideas for an Effective Morning Ritual

(This is helpful for adults, but rituals can be created for your children as well!)

1. Don’t be afraid to tweak your ritual as time passes to suit your needs.
2. Incorporate the activities you love in your morning ritual. As time goes, different things will make you happy in the morning and thus, tweaking is essential.
3. Don’t plan on having the ‘perfect’ ritual. Everybody’s morning ritual is unique to his or her own liking. Your ritual should make you feel happy and enthused instead of filling you with dread.
4. Include light exercises to get your endorphins and blood pumping to give you a better mood.
5. Be patient. It takes 44 days to form a habit, thus, don’t be tempted to give up on a morning ritual too soon.
6. Go for a walk or jog in nature in the morning to give you perspective.
7. Begin your day with a beloved beverage of choice to enthuse you into getting out of bed – be it a self-concocted hazelnut latte, a banana smoothie, a cappuccino, fragrant tea..you get the idea.
8. Some people journal or write in their gratitude journals in the mornings. It’s not my favourite morning activity personally, but it might work for you.
9. Some meditate to clear their minds in the morning.
10. Enjoy the sunrise

All the best!