What do you mean – “the answer is YES!” Well, besides being a smart-aleck answer, there’s a lot of positive, can-do attitude that shows up in that answer.
Let’s explore positive energy and what that can mean in your life, your work, your world. I used to have a sign on my desk that read “Before you ask, the answer is NO!” Of course, it was just a joke. I’d rather find a way to say YES. In fact, one of my favorite answers to an either-or question is YES (my wife calls this a “Charlie” answer!). I’d rather say YES to making things happen than NO, it can’t be done. How about you?
Have you ever had a great idea squashed by someone who could always find ten ways why your idea wouldn’t work?
Have you ever been in a brainstorming session where creative discussion stops cold because someone has figured out the answer to everything?
Have you ever been a member of a committee where the final report is more about getting the job done quickly rather than producing a quality program?
What’s wrong with these situations is that the search for the right answer stopped short of asking the right question.
Peter Block poses some interesting – and profound – questions in his book, The Answer to How is Yes. Block states that most of us move too quickly from the possibility to the practicality of an idea or proposed course of action.
When we move too quickly to asking “HOW will we do this?” we often forget that the real question of “SHALL we do this?” gets bypassed. We need to think about what really matters rather than how to get the job done.
Rather than worrying too soon about HOW?, let’s ask ourselves WHETHER? Or as Block suggests, “…saying YES – not literally, but as a symbol of our stance toward the possibility of more meaningful change.”
Are you old enough to remember President Kennedy’s bold assertion that the United States would land a man on the moon within ten years? What a bold, daring, fly-in-the-face-of-reality statement that was! Can you imagine what the result would have been if he were more worried about HOW? He wasn’t – he said YES first – and the HOW came later. And it happened within ten years.
Opening up to the possibility of YES! takes practice, especially if your usual response is to talk yourself out of taking action. If you hear yourself saying, “… but I can’t because …” you have talked yourself out of doing something you really want to do. Before you’ve asked, you’ve answered NO!
Who told you NO? You did. Who said it couldn’t be done? You did. Who robbed you of your positive energy? You did.
Jon Gordon calls Negativity “the enemy.” Negativity not only kills productivity and companies, it also kills people. “Self-doubt, fear, hopelessness, and negative energy drain you and sabotage everything you want in life and all the success you desire.”
Positive energy, states Gordon, is “… high octane fuel for the ride of your life…” At today’s gas prices, its’ important to fill your tank with high quality fuel so you don’t end up with a tankful of sludge!
Michael Losier cautions that our words generate either a positive or negative vibration. Words such as Don’t, Not, No generate negative energy. If you hear yourself saying them, ask yourself, “So what Do I want?” The words change – and so does your energy.
Try saying YES – and see what happens!
Coaching Moments:
- When in your life have you experienced Don't, Not, and No?
- What were the results?
- What do you most want to say YES to?
- What is telling you NO?
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