"Yes Ma'am"

I am a "yes ma'am."

A "yes ma'am" is my version of what has commonly been known as a "yes man," following the late-2000's rom/com, celebrating the spontaneity of saying "yes" to life in general. While the message sent in the movie meant well, being an everyday "yes ma'am," as I call it, isn't like Hollywood made it seem.

Recently, I've struggled with over-programming myself and being stretched too thin. It's always my hope to help others, and I make it a point to say yes to everything I am able -or think I am able- to do. I'm grateful for the number of opportunities I've received in my life; however, they've begun to exhaust me at times.

At one point, I was working 40 hours each week, taking 18 credit hours at school and volunteering with multiple organizations each week. I don't remember whether or not I was sleeping at all. Much of it is still a blur! I started to realize that over-programming myself was causing me to let others down much more than I would by simply saying "no" in the first place. My mind was constantly occupied at work, thinking about the homework that I needed to complete once I left. I was always in a hurry to get home and get started, but by the time I was settled in, I was too tired and would worry myself to sleep. My grades started slipping, which made me irritable, and led to me taking it out on others in my personal life. This cycle became normal for me, and I could tell a change was long overdue. That's when I began pulling back from some of my responsibilities and clearing up more time to reset and relax.

I'm finding in this time that there's nothing wrong with saying "no" when you need to. No one has chastised me for being too busy for their task or made me feel guilty for drawing the line somewhere. I still have a bit more on my plate than I know I should, but if nothing else, I'm learning. I'm finally trying to give myself some necessary breathing room, and it's paying off.

"Yes Man" may have glamorized the "yes" type of lifestyle a bit. Saying "yes" to a random flight to Lincoln, Nebraska, is quite a bit different than taking on the workload that I had been for a while. The day-to-day of busy 21 year old probably would've made the movie a little less entertaining though. Learn from my mistakes- you don't have to be Super(wo)man.