You are in control

Imagine you are driving a car. You are coming across a redlight that is about to turn red. Your co-driver urges you to drive past it. Maybe they are in a hurry. You can say “No”. Even if this makes your co-driver angry and they will start arguing with you.

But think about it this way: If something goes wrong - you have to speed up, and something happens, like touching another crossing car, or even worse, running into a person - who will be responsible? Not your co-driver, but you. You are in control, because you are currently responsible.

The same goes for similar situations:

• (Staying with the car scenario for a bit) Someone wants you to take a specific parking slot because it is closer to your destination, but you don’t feel comfortable & feel there is not enough space. You can say “No”. You are in control.
• Someone thinks that you are being too kind with your child and you should discipline them? You can say “No”. You are in control.

Listen to them, think about it yourself, and decide for yourself. They can be right, but they don’t have to be right. You are responsible for your own actions and their consequences, and therefore you can always say “No”. And that’s OK.

On a similar note: Things you’re allowed to do