A few years ago Derek Sivers wrote a popular post called Hell Yeah, or No.

I like this a lot.

It’s a simple and useful heuristic to use in many situations, particularly for entrepreneurs and independent workers who are overwhelmed, have taken on too much, or feel scattered.

But it can be misleading, especially in the latter situation. What if it’s a little more complicated than that?

What if you’re running on fumes?

Those flow states aren’t happening?

The short term financial pressure is real?

You’re flailing, fumbling, scrambling?

The Hell Yeah easily slips into Yes, I Guess. 

The gut No gets suppressed. It can even gradually turn against you.

I still believe Derek is largely correct, but it’s not always easy to be so clear cut when there are a few shades of grey involved.

Sometimes we may need to compromise and allow for a little bit of yes…I guess.