You might wonder why this topic?
However, thought of giving you food for thought – introspection.
Saying no to friends is a tricky scenario, especially at an age that their relative importance is higher or when one is nervous about the relationship. It’s not easy to say NO to anyone but how about a true friend? If you think saying NO will deteriorate your image, then that reflects your innate sense of insecurity that makes you focus on pleasing people around including your friends.
Whether in school, college or workplace, each one of us confronts peer pressure in some or the other way. If you don’t feel it right, do not feel guilty. Opting out is the best option, saying NO will not jeopardize your friendship. We are sharing some instances when saying NO can benefit you in the long run.
- Substance abuse: Your friend might have a substance abuse problem also called drug abuse or addiction. In such a case, your friend might force you to do the same and make your taste buds go wild to the point of addiction. Say a big NO to your friend in this situation as it is something you know is bad for you.
- Putting your core duties at stake: Friend who asks you to do things that put your core duties at stake, try not doing it. Like, if they ask you for a movie but you have exams in the next week. If they ask you for a night out when your parents are not in town and you have to take care of your house and young siblings. Always be polite while saying no to your friend.
- Unethical things: If a friend asks you to do something that your conscience doesn’t approve of or is morally incorrect, strictly say no to them. For instance, if your friend asks you to steal money from home, lie to your parents about where you were for the evening or cheating on exam papers by copying it off the internet. These things ruin your image and create a bad impression of yours on your teachers, parent, and others. Say no and stop yourself from practicing immoral activities.
- Illegal dare: Often college students dare each other to do illegal things just to have fun, look cool and create an impression among other students. They ask you to do things like ragging, bullying, drink and driving and speeding up in the car race. Never do a mistake of agreeing with what they have asked to do. Do not apologize and keep your apology for the time you really do something wrong. They are not friends who ask you to do an offense.
- Monetary help: “Give a man a fish, and he will be hungry tomorrow; teach a man to fish, he will never go hungry again”. Many of us have that type of friend who very often ask for money to fulfill their petty but unwanted needs for which their parents don’t give them money. Be straight forward and very politely say no to lend them money,no need to gild your NO with a lie or pad it with lame excuses. Once you give them money they will ask for it again and again because lending money to such a type is like a short-term band-aid that will not help your friend in the long run.
At the very least, you simply cannot be all things to all the people. A close friend if he or she is a true best friend will always understand you. If your relationship is honest and open, you don’t have to always try to please your friend to keep the friendship solid. Give yourself permission to say NO without feeling guilty, mean or selfish.
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