My Year of No.
What I learned when I stopped saying "yes" to everything
For most of my career, my calendar was a full itinerary of good — though clearly over-extended — intentions.
AFP St. Louis Board of Directors.
AFP Global Education Advisory Committee.
CFRE Ambassador.
Handbell rehearsal followed by choir, every Wednesday night.
Panel here.
Free gig there.
Volunteer everywhere.
Say yes. To everything. Show up. Repeat.
I was busy. And busy, in the world I built for myself, meant I was doing it right.
Something that no one tells you about busy? It will let you down.
When I got let go from Catholic Charities of St. Louis in February 2025, I looked around at all the things I said "yes" to — the committees, the board service, the credentials, the visibility — none of it cushioned the fall. Not a bit.
The hustle had made me look good. But it had not made me safe.
So, I did something that felt, at the time, almost radical:
I stopped hustling.
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