Take one look at my calendar and you can tell it’s been a busy year. I’ve had more blind reach-outs come my way than ever before. Some write because there are job openings on my team and they want to know more before applying. Others write after reading a piece of mine online that resonated. Still others are from folks who have seen me speak at conferences and want my feedback on something they’re building.
At first, I said yes to everything. Yes, I’ll help you find a job! Yes, I’ll give you product feedback! Yes, I’ll grab coffee and tell you about my career path! This was in part because I remember being in the other person’s shoes (writing to someone whose work I admired, hoping to catch a little more wisdom by meeting them in person), and in part because I really love meeting new people, I found it hard to say no.
But after a while I realized that saying yes to everything wasn’t scalable (or, I had to admit, even very fun). All my yesses to strangers or friends of friends meant I was busy all the time. I saw my boyfriend less. I called home less frequently. I missed team outings. I had to say no to things I really wanted to say yes to, because I’d said yes to things I wasn’t certain I could say no to.Read her solution in FastCompany.
#NoMoreFOMO
... #JOMO
Thanks +Julia Chou
