Hey everyone, it's Annabelle. And I'm here to talk about the scary two-letter word:

NO.

We're all busy people. We all have things to do.

So why does declining an invitation or straight up saying "no" seem so wrong?

Part of this is our societal conditioning to be nice. We're taught from a young age to be agreeable. This is great; in order to survive as a species, we have to get along! But sometimes you really don't want to talk to someone. You have more pressing issues that need your attention, and would rather be doing anything else than carrying on a conversation or attending a party.

But this article isn't about nicely saying no. This article is for all the people who make saying no so difficult.

I'm talking about the people who don't handle "no" with grace. The people that you say no to and can instantly tell that they'll hold it against you FOREVER because they don't have the emotional maturity to realize that's simply ridiculous.

To those people: Your problem is that you're internalizing the no. The no isn't about you. It's not a direct reflection of your likability or moral character. The vast majority of the time whoever is rejecting your invitation or conversation isn't trying to brush you off or make you feel bad, they're trying to get stuff done.

No one should have to feel that they must justify their non-agreeable response unless it's an extreme situation (i.e."No honey I'm not coming to our wedding today"). Suffice to say, don't be incredibly rude or condescending when you decline. But if you don't want to go to that event, you shouldn't have to make up an elaborate but plausible lie that the person you're rejecting will find important enough to accept without a fuss.

Instead, those who take no poorly need to understand that it's not about them. If your ego is so fragile that two letters can ruin your day, it's time to take a step back and work on your self-confidence (but that's another article entirely).

In the end, we've all handled rejection poorly, no matter how big or small. But if each person took the time to realize that "no" isn't the damning word it's come to be associated as, the world would be a less resentful place.