When was the last time you said “yes please”
A quick disclaimer: saying “yes please” to your barista when you bought coffee this morning doesn’t count!
What we’re talking about here is accepting help when you need it…
and also when you don’t need it but it would be helpful anyway.
So often we can get stuck in this automatic response of saying “oh no, I’m ok thanks anyway” or similar.
People offer us a lift somewhere and we say “oh, I’m ok walking thanks”
They offer to help carry something; we say “no thanks, I’m good”
Someone asks if they can make you a coffee and you say “no thanks”
We might feel like we don’t want to put anyone out
We don’t want to be a burden
To feel that we owe the other person something.
But people have free will.
If they offer to do something, they’re probably ok doing it – or they wouldn’t have offered!
If they can see you are struggling in some way, most people will want to help.
And actually, as I’ve mentioned before – helping someone is a good way to improve your mood.
When someone offers to help or support you in some way – big or small – it helps them too.
When you say “yes please” you are allowing them to feel they have helped you
And that can feel good for both of you.
Those offers of help are usually a person offering a bit of human connection.
Whether they’re offering to get you a coffee, or to do something much bigger or more complicated…
If they’ve offered, they want to do it. Let them do it. Say “yes please”
Accepting help from the people around us is how society functions.
When we say “yes please” we are keeping that basic human connection of society going.
And it can feel incredibly nourishing to allow someone to help you.
The really tricky part is to say “yes please” without keeping a mental note that you now owe this person something.
Can you do that?
Try it and see how it feels this week.