People have written a lot of things about “How to simplify your life”. For example: 

• Make a list of your top 5 important things
• Evaluate your time
• Simplify home tasks
• Learn to say no
• Limit your communications
• Limit your media consumption 

Etc. etc…

I don’t deny it’s not useful to read about that, because they are always a very good reminder for us. We really can do something from those lists. At least, we can do something with it, especially in moment after we read them. 

If you ask me, I think the most important is to learn  how to say NO! All other things are practical and mainly they are in close connection with your organization skills. How you can organize your life better or how you can manage your life.  

But, learn to say NO! That’s not easy.  

If you’ve lived a whole life trying to satisfy others, forgot yourself and what you really want.  That will make this useful advice more difficult to apply in your daily life.  

First you have to ask yourself:
Why I am doing that?
Do I think that people will love me more in that case? (Answer is NO)
Shall I have more friends? (Answer is NO, but also you don’t need friends who only think about themselves and never about you).  

And finally, the most important is to become aware that you are probably (after that) totally unsatisfied. You did a nice thing for someone else, but you also could do a nice thing for yourself. You put yourself at the second position. What did you do for yourself??? I am not talking now about helping people in time of trouble, so don’t understand me wrong.

I am talking about those kinds of people who just think that you are available for them all the time and they think that you don’t have other things to do in your life. Sorry to tell you this: it’s not their fault; you have learned them to think about you on that way.  Say ” YES” because you want to say Yes and not because someone else expect it.

When I am writing this I have to think about my mother. She is my inspiration for this post. I think, she is a woman who never said NO to anybody. And you can ask me:” How she feels?” I will tell you: Unsatisfied, frustrated.  I had to listen every time (after those kinds of actions) how angry she was at herself and what things she could do for herself instead doing that for others. But she never changed it and she is still doing it…… 

Don’t even think it’s selfish! Forget that! You have your own life, and don’t aloud to other people to organize your life instead of you! That also means that you don’t respect your life, your time, your needs and yourself!  

In that case, the first thing you must do is to raise your standards about yourself! You have to decide that you will no longer accept and tolerate that. You deserve your own life and nobody else can organize it instead of you. Respect yourself and everthing what is in connection.
Practice to say NO in front of mirror. Try to imagine how you will feel in moment when you are saying NO to someone. You say NO and how it sounds? What a relief… Feel it… and next time: Just do it! Please… You can do it!

You can’t imagine how your life will change… That little word with only two letters is so powerful!  

If you do that, don’t hesitate to inform me about how you felt in that very important moment for YOUR LIFE.