Today’s story is about saying no.

For some people, it’s easy. They set boundaries, know their limits, refuse to take on too much.

For others, it’s tougher. They find themselves agreeing to things they don’t really want to. (The “why” behind this is another question.)

I also think there’s a third group: People who have a hard time saying no, but who also never quite say yes, either.

Writing on CNBC.com, Juliet Funt, founder and CEO of a boutique efficiency firm, Juliet Funt Group, and the author of A Minute to Think, recently shared a series of five go-to phrases that allow you to set limits without ever having to actually use the word, “no.”

Here’s what she came up with:

1. “May I take a day to get back to you?”

I like this one to start, in part because I often wind up taking that day—or two or three—without ever asking or letting the other person know.

But it seems smart to put it this way: let them know you received the request and you value it enough to reply…without actually committing to anything. I suppose that, technically, you haven’t even committed to getting back to them, although it’s implied.

2. “I can do it for you this time, but I can’t do it for you every time.”

This seems like the grown-up, non-parental analogy to when my daughter asks me if we can do something that I don’t think is a good idea, and instead of having the debate at the time, I reply, “Well, we’ll see.”

She knows that probably means “no,” or at least that I’m trying to find a way to offer what we might call a “limited yes.” Similar energy here, only with adults.

3. “It does not [or will not] work for me to ... ”

This one is clever in its obfuscation. It won’t work? What exactly does that mean, except that you’re not going to move heaven and earth to make it happen?

Note that moving heaven and earth is not your responsibility, of course.

4. “I can’t, but here’s another option for you.”

Good one here, too, and commonly used: you’re turning someone down while attempting to be helpful—or at least sharing that you cared enough to think about their issue for a minute or two.

5. “It’s not good for me now, but let’s look ahead in our calendars.”

This one could be dangerous for some people; it’s a polite and hopeful variation on procrastination, or what I like to call, “hitting life’s snooze button.” You’ll have to decide whether it’s better for your mental health and relationships than just saying “no” and being done with it.

Funt also has a paradigm she describes in her article that she calls The Hourglass, explaining how to judge whether you can or should say “no” to any specific request. But I found her list of go-to phrases to be the most useful takeaway.

So, call for comments… what do you think?

Do you have trouble saying “no” to things? Or maybe you don’t say “no” very often, but you don’t think that’s a problem. (Maybe it’s not; who am I to judge?) Also, are there other polite, go-to phrases you’ve found that help avoid getting committed to things without being negative? Let us know in the comments.

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7 other things worth your time

• The last US soldier to leave Afghanistan was Maj. Gen. Chris Donahue, commander of the 82nd Airborne Division; his departure ends America’s longest war. (WRAL)

XVIII Airborne Corps @18airbornecorps

In awe of our Sky Dragon Soldiers. This was an incredibly tough, pressurized mission filled with multiple complexities, with active threats the entire time. Our troops displayed grit, discipline and empathy. Below is a picture of the last Soldier to leave Afghanistan.

August 30th 2021

2,685 Retweets10,976 Likes

• The last three days of Stars & Stripes, the newspaper for US troops, that were actually delivered in Afghanistan. (Disclosure: I was a Stripes reporter back in 2010-2012.)

J.p. Lawrence @JpLawrence3

A dizzying three day span in Afghanistan, expressed in front covers of @starsandstripes newspapers.

August 30th 2021

35 Retweets87 Likes

• In the wake of skyrocketing COVID infections with the highly transmissible Delta variant, the EU has taken steps to remove the US from its safe travel list. (ABC News)

• Hostile school board meetings across the country are prompting members to ask, ‘Why am I doing this?’ (AP)

• President Biden is considering using his clemency powers to commute the sentences of certain federal drug offenders released to home confinement during the pandemic rather than forcing them to return to prison. (NY Times)

• 10 slides, 20 minutes, 30-point font: how to use the 10-20-30 rule to give better PowerPoint presentations. (Inc.com)

• How do bosses react when they figure out the Bora Bora background in a Zoom call is real? (Kind of a fun compendium of stories from people who figured, since I’m working remotely during the pandemic, why not relocate to Tahiti or Barbados?) (WSJ)

Thanks for reading. Photo credit: Pixabay. (I kind of love that the filename for this photo was just, “teenager.jpg.”) Want to see all my mistakes? Click here.