When you’re living amidst uncertainty, clarity can be hard to find. One method that can get you back on a clear path is letting your yes’s be yes so your no’s can be no. This reduces your internal uncertainty, and when practiced regularly reveals which direction you desire to pursue.

I saw this when I was coaching a teacher who felt a transition coming in her life - internally she was curious about new horizons and externally new offers kept coming her way. However, she couldn’t figure out which options to pursue, so she experimented.

For 6 months she taught short courses with different groups, even the ones she wasn’t sure about, and by the end she knew one thing: “Some places sparkle when I teach, and others just don’t. And I want to be where I and others sparkle.” This is the kind of clarity that helps you hone next steps.

We took her insight, and generated a short list of evaluation questions that she could use to determine what kind of work would be most life giving for her in her next stage. These included: “Does it make me sparkle?”; “How does the idea of it make me feel?”; “Is this in alignment with what I want to offer?”. Based on these answers she would give the gig a yes or no and stick with her choice, and within a month she was clear about how to pursue the next phase of life.

When you are living through a moment of collective uncertainty and transition, finding your internal clarity keeps you grounded. Without grounding, you are more easily tossed around in the chaos that accompanies collective uncertainty. Even temporary clarity will help.

I have found myself going back and forth more often, and this same teacher remembered of the power of letting my yes’s mean yes and letting my no’s mean now. Now I’ve used these as an anchor, and it has me energized and focused.

Give it a try this week with small and large decisions for a week, and see how your focus changes. This is a practice in setting boundaries, which can increase your feeling of safety. So trust your your word, and watch what is able to manifest.