Behind the Art with Felecia

I don't think there is anything more liberating than the world "NO." 

Not the rude, defiant kind of "no." But more the "No, thank you. I'm opting out." kind of "no." 

I"m one of those people who feels like maybe the world will fall apart if I am not running from task to task and obligation to obligation. First of all, how arrogant of me, and second of all, WHAT!?!??! How much pressure can one person exert on themselves?  

After having my second child, I quickly realized that our schedules and our obligations had to find some harmony or I was going to drive myself crazy.

So I had to learn one little word - the hardest word I still don't probably use enough - NO. 

Somewhere along the way, I started to own the lie that it was my job to make other people happy, that it was my job to keep all the plates spinning.

When your daily to do list goes from "get to" to "have to" its time to make some changes. So....as time has gone on, I've really started to weigh what is important and what is not, to get up and walk away from my desk, to say "no" to the things that seem to be more about somebody else's purpose than my own. 

When you say "no" to things, you are open to say "yes" to other kinds of experiences. There is beautiful freedom in that, in feeling like you have options, like there is room in an organized and ordered life to be creative and messy and fun.

What things have you learned get in the way of your liberation? Are there things you have learned to shed to liberate yourself? Maybe there is something you wish you could shed that would liberate you?