Review: Never Say Yes Again Unless You Really Mean It!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 04 20, 2014
In the movie 27 DRESSES there’s a moment when the hero asks the heroine if she’s  ever said “no.”  “Many, many times” she says, before breaking down and finally admitting, “Never. Not once.”  I’m not quite that bad but there have been a lot of times (a LOT of times) where I really, really meant to say “no” but what I said was “yes” and then I wanted to kill myself because I’d just committed to spending a big chunk of my almost non-existent free time doing something I really, really didn’t want to do.This book by Charlene Richard could have been written just for me. With chapters titled things like, “The Thought of Saying Totally No Freaks Me Out,” I immediately got the feeling that she knew me and knew exactly how hard it was not to be the one saying “yes” all the time. The author is a therapist who has seen many, many women ignore their own needs and “stuff their emotions” in the name of taking care of their loved ones. More than anything else, this short book is a blueprint for a new architecture of communication—a way to breaking through when people don’t seem to be listening.Richard’s common-sense advice feels “real world” and her gentle nudging toward learning how to communicate emotions feels liberating. “Stop Reacting! Start Responding! she says and it makes sense. We don’t feel like we’re getting “bumper sticker” philosophy here but real tools that are simple (but not necessarily easy) as they are transformative.If you have problems saying no, this book may explain why. Saying “yes” to the advice here will (at the very least) make sure you never commit to making five dozen cupcakes for a school bake sale because  you’re everyone’s go-to-gal.