I have always had a hard time saying “no” to people. If someone asks me for help or for a favor then I always want to come to the rescue. Of course I can say it, but then I feel extreme guilt or like I am a bad person. It has taken me a long time to come to terms with the fact that I cannot please everyone and that I need to think about myself some. I found it especially hard to say no when I was doing my internship this past summer. Any time I was asked to do a story or run somewhere, I did it with no questions asked. On day one of my internship the executive editor of the paper went of do’s and don’ts for the job. High on the list and something she stressed a great deal was not to let people you are doing a story on buy you things or give you stuff. Often when conducting an interview I was offered a free meal or some product. It was difficult saying no because many of the people took it as an insult. This having to turn stuff down made me feel kinda bad because I felt like I was letting these people down or shunning their generosity. I was “tempted” to accept their offers. This got me thinking however, that instead of worrying about what other people will think or how they will perceive things I need to think about me. If I spend all my time worrying that someone might see me negatively for saying no then I am not being true to myself. It would be in my best interest and will probably even benefit me in my future career if I think about what I need to accomplish first and foremost and then take others into consdieration secondly. I am not saying to shun everyone or become completely selfish, but I think that if you worry about what other people think and cater to their needs then you could mess it up for yourself. If I took the free meals and stuff just because I was worried the person might be upset then I would be going against the rules of the company I was working for. This same idea of being afraid to stand up and be true to yourself could also be applied to other areas. If I spent all my time doing what other people wanted me to do then I might not develop my own identity. For example, if I am asked to work on a story that I feel is morally wrong or I am uncomfortable with, but then I feel too afraid to say “no” I would be doing myself a disservice. It is good to take the values of others into consideration, but the only person you can control is you, so you should make sure you are comfortable and doing what is best.
