A Simple Question That Exposes What Truly Matters
Welcome to Linked And Lift, your weekly guide to thriving in your career and designing a life you love for entrepreneurs and ambitious professionals. Each week, you get research-backed insights and we break down the skills, strategies, and mindsets you need to stay ahead of the curve.
I’m always refining this newsletter to make sure you get the most useful, relevant insights for your growth.
Take 15 seconds here to make sure the next editions speak directly to you.
The Word That Quietly Transforms Everything
There’s a French word I’ve been thinking about lately: Non.
In English, we soften it.
We apologise around it.
We dress it up with explanations.
But in French, non stands alone.
No explanation. No apology. Just… non.
And that got me thinking.
We often think the biggest changes in life come from big decisions.
But sometimes the most transformational word in your entire life is just two letters:
No.
💡What’s in Store This Week:
Why “No” is the ultimate clarity tool
The cost of “just for now” compromises
A reflection for ambitious women (and their teens)
Linked & Lift Picks
🕒 Read Time: 5 minutes
A Quiet No Can Reshape Your Entire Life
Here’s a question that can quietly shift everything:
“If this were my last year on earth, would I still do this?”
When you answer that honestly, something shifts.
Suddenly:
The inbox wasn’t quite so urgent.
The meeting didn’t feel as essential.
The argument felt less worth the energy.
We fill our days with “just for now” decisions,
but those temporary compromises have a funny way of becoming permanent.
Before we know it, they shape our weeks… and then our years.
And one day, you wake up living a life shaped by things you didn’t even want to choose.
But guess what?
You’re allowed to choose again.
A Reminder for Women Who Lead - at Work and at Home
If you’re a woman running a business, leading a team, or parenting a high school teen who’s navigating exams and self-doubt, you’re already holding so much.
Maybe you’re also navigating your own visibility journey, finding your voice in a world that often asks you to quiet it.
And through it all, maybe you’ve been putting some of your own needs on pause.
It’s understandable. So many of us do.
But I want to gently remind you:
You’re allowed to change the rules.
You’re allowed to pause.
You’re allowed to say no, even to things that once felt like “shoulds.”
Because you are not a waiting room for your own life.
What Saying “No” Can Look Like
Saying no doesn’t have to mean giving things up.
Sometimes, it simply means making space,
for what feels more aligned, more energising, more true.
It might look like:
Saying no to overcommitting, even when you could say yes
Saying no to self-judgment when things feel hard
Saying no to the idea that your worth comes from productivity
It can also look like modelling boundaries to our children,
helping them see that self-respect and self-expression matter just as much as achievement.
Sometimes, one small “no” becomes the doorway to a deeper yes.
Here’s what I’ve learned through teaching oral fluency:
You don’t need to be perfect. You need to be clear.
The same is true for your life.
You don’t need all the answers.
You need to be clear about what matters,
and courageous enough to protect it.
Linked & Lift Picks
Book: Essentialism by Greg McKeown - The art of doing less, but better.
Podcast: We Can Do Hard Things by Glennon Doyle - especially the episode on boundary-setting with kids.
Quote: “Every ‘yes’ is a ‘no’ to something else. Choose with intention.” – Unknown
A Reflection to Carry Into the Week
I’ll leave you with this:
The life you want isn’t hiding. It’s waiting.
On the other side of your next no.
Take a breath.
Take your time.
There’s no rush,
but there is power in choosing what stays, and what gently falls away.
So this week, I invite you to ask yourself:
What are you ready to say no to.
Not out of rejection, but in honour of what matters most?
I’d love to hear your thoughts if you’d like to share.
📩 Share the Lift: Know someone who needs this message? Share this newsletter with them to help them.
⭐ Rate This Edition: Your feedback shapes Linked And Lift! Let me know what you want to see more of.
👉 What are you ready to say no to?
👇 Hit reply and let me know. I read every response, and sometimes the most powerful breakthroughs happen in these conversations.
And thank you for being a part of our Linked And Lift community!
Until next time,
Véronique Barrot
Educator | Founder, Linked And Lift
Helping women leaders grow their impact, and their high school teens achieve French exam success at the highest level.
Follow me on LinkedIn where I share self-leadership and growth insights Monday to Friday (except Wednesdays).
P.S. If you’re wondering what I do beyond writing newsletters: I support ambitious women leaders in two ways: through strategic personal branding for founders, and helping their high school teens go from “I’m not a language person” to earning A–A* in IGCSE, O Level & A-Level French exams. Now I also support IB students in French. Both missions are about the same thing: rebuilding foundations that were never quite solid. If that’s relevant to your world, I’m here.