How to Be Awesome at Your Job 1080: How to Say No When the World Demands Yes with Dr. Sunita Sah
13 snips
Jul 31, 2025 
Dr. Sunita Sah, an award-winning professor at Cornell University and bestselling author, shares insights on the importance of saying no in a world that pressures compliance. She discusses the psychological toll of conforming and offers strategies to assert boundaries without damaging relationships. The conversation also highlights how redefining defiance can lead to authentic living, the role of societal expectations, and the necessity of embracing constructive dissent in professional environments. Sah provides a unique framework to help individuals reflect on their values and build assertiveness.
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
Compliance Equals Goodness Myth
- Compliance is often equated with being "good" and defiance with being "bad."
- This mindset makes resisting authority or peer pressure very difficult even when necessary.
Reframing Defiance Positively
- Defiance is redefined as acting in line with your true values despite pressure to do otherwise.
- This positive form of defiance helps build honest and value-aligned environments.
Struggling to Contradict a Rep
- Pete experienced difficulty rejecting incorrect claims from a Comcast representative despite contradictory evidence.
- This illustrated how social pressure and politeness inhibit saying no even in low-stakes situations.
