I’ve been told many times over my short thirty-one years that I’m wise beyond my age. An old head on young shoulders, they say.

I don’t know it all, mind you.

But one thing that’s taken me far too long to realise is this: Saying “no” — when I want to — might be the most powerful thing I’ve learned.

It’s the most powerful word in the dictionary.

For most of my life, I’ve been a people pleaser. Acquaintances, friends, girlfriends — they usually got the better end of the deal. I made decisions where my own joy, my own growth, and my own life took the hit.

Ironically, the person closest to me also lives that way — sacrificing their life, their needs, for others. Especially for me.

I find myself prioritising the wrong people sometimes. And it’s taken me too long to realise it.

The power of “no” is exquisite. Exceptional. Two letters, carrying more profound positivity than the three letters its opposite holds.

Using it is a vote for simplicity. A vote for yourself. A claim to the greatest asset life offers: time.

Use “no” more often.

It’s a beautiful word — one that allowed the beauty of the world to exist. Because the beauty isn’t found in having everything. It’s found in appreciating what’s missing.

If that doesn’t make sense now, one day it will.

Vote for more simplicity. Vote for more time.

Speak soon,
Jordan