There’s a reason fast food restaurants ask if you want fries with that. It’s the same reason a hotel booking site will ask if you want travel insurance with that. It’s the same reason a restaurant asks if you’d like to leave a tip. And it’s the same reason that people stand on street corners handing out flyers. It’s because they all know that it’s more difficult to say no than it is to say yes.
One of the challenges I find myself confronting more often than not is one of creating space myself. The world is full of add-ons and distractions – demands for our time and attention. If I said yes to every one of them, there’d be no time left do the work that can only come from having the space and time to sit, think, draw, and create. But if I said no to every one of them, the solitude I seek could turn into loneliness.
That’s not an easy balance to strike sometimes but it’s always one worth checking in on – do I really want fries today or is it just because someone asked and it’s difficult to say no.