I can’t be everything to everyone!
One of my few New Year’s resolutions is going to be to put my foot down a bit more. In the nicest possible way, obviously!
I went out a few Fridays ago and spent the entire time running around like a lunatic. First off I had dinner with some friends, then I had two leaving do’s to go to, and then my boyfriend’s parents were up for the weekend so I was planning to dash back home and say hi to them while they were still awake (and before I collapsed into bed). Needless to say, I had to drop the last part of the plan… The whole thing was completely unrealistic.
I spent the entire evening panicking about getting to the next party and was so stressed out that in the end I didn’t really enjoy the evening in the way I should have done.
Believe it or not, when another friend had emailed a few days before to ask me if I could meet her for a drink the same night, I was going to try and fit that in too. It was hard, but I had to say no.
Other people may not think saying no is a big deal, but I’m always so worried about offending people that I end up putting everyone else first and not looking after myself. And where’s the fun in that?
At the end of the day, if a friend is a friend they’re going to understand that they’re not the only person in your life and sometimes you won’t be able to make it along to everything. No one can be in five places at once.
Saying no to people is definitely an ongoing struggle for me, but it’s a battle that I’m determined to win in 2009!