Just Say Yes

I have found that opportunities come when I least expect it. It seems to me that when your head is down and you are grinding out what you need to do an opportunity is more likely to arrive.  I have never had an opportunity happen when I was just sitting around. This means that opportunity comes when your life is already full. I have stressed out when this has happened to me. It can make the opportunity look like stress.  In reality it is stressful to have an outside influence change the course you were on. But what do you do? Do you just say Yes?

This month I had lunch with a VP of major bank. She told me that earlier in her career she was presented with a once in a lifetime opportunity. Her boss told her that he needed an answer right then when the opportunity was presented. If she said no, it would have been advertised to others. If she said no, she was saying no to advancing. At the time of the offer, she was married to a husband with his own career and had two small children. She didn’t have time to discuss the offer with her husband. What would you do? Do you just say Yes.

She said Yes and has gone on to become a VP. Everything that you and I would worry about, she also worries about. The difference is that she said Yes. Then she worked out everything that she was worrying about. I believe that there are always solutions. We may not like them. They may cost time and or money. But there is always a solution.

What conversations do you need to have to be ready?

When your next opportunity is presented, do you just say Yes?