My superpower? I’m glad you asked. My superpower is being a total human doormat. Apparently I’m incapable of saying “NO” and meaning it. I might say no, but I rarely have the ability to follow through with it.

Example:

Person: I need you to do (insert imposition here) for me.

Me: I can’t right now.

Person: Come on, just this once (this is actually the 30th or 40th time I’ve done this for this person)?

Me: Ok…I guess if I rearrange my (insert life, finances, time, procedures) I could.

That’s my curse, I’m competent and reliable…and a pushover. Family, friends, and coworkers all know they can abuse my good nature and I’m not going to say a thing.

Standing up for myself has never been an easy thing for me to do. At 44 years old I’m realizing that I need to be more willing to say no and actually stick to it. It’s really true that nice guys finish last…because we’re always doing our work and everyone else’s too.

From now on, NO isn’t a word that means maybe in my vocabulary. It means that after careful consideration, I feel that the cost/benefit ratio of the proposal is too far in the cost column on my ledger and I will require a more balanced proposal before I agree.