No.
With the holidays coming to a close for 2014 I've heard many people discussing what their big resolutions for 2015 will be. I thought I'd make a suggestion of adding this word to your regular rotation of things you say 
often. In fact, if there was a study done on the easiest, most efficient ways to free up time, help you focus, and improve your business and personal life, I think "No" would be the winner - after all, it doesn't get much easier than 2 letters.
Too many of us say 'yes' far too often. When asked a favor, when help is needed, when someone wants something we're not positive we can deliver- human nature defaults us to "yes". We want to please others. In a service industry like real estate, "yes" is even more prevalent as we strive to outperform our competition in service, but "yes" can be a business killer.
Recently I've been told yes, or given a promise that I'd have info by a certain date, only to be let down. This tends to happen a lot during the holidays, but there's really no reason for it. If people would only say "no" up front, instead of promising something they can't deliver on, we'd be in a much better place. With a "no" response, I could have moved on and pursued other resources, thinking the person was too busy to help. With a "yes" response that goes undelivered, these people come off as unreliable, flaky, and unorganized - not exactly traits of someone I'd ever want to refer business to or work with. As far as timelines go, our business is based on deadlines - rate locks, commitment dates, settlement dates, etc. If you tell me I'll have something important by a certain date, I pass that info along to others to keep everyone in the loop. When it doesn't happen, I look like an ass - I make an ass of myself often enough that I don't need help from others in doing it.
Saying yes when you should be saying "NO" results in all sorts of time wasted amongst other negative things. Here are a few:
-You try to multitask what you told someone you'd do with what you SHOULD be doing. Your juggling makes all projects suffer in quality.
-You tend to overpromise and underdeliver. You say yes to something you really don't have capacity for and you come across as unreliable when you can't deliver.
-What you SHOULD be doing doesn't get done. Your mind is distracted by promises you've made and other things drawing on your attention.
Moving from yes to no isn't an easy transition. One easy way to do it is to stop thinking of no as a negative word. When you say "no" to something, what you're really doing is freeing up the time and space for the perfect "yes" - when you have time and commitment to do something and do it right. You're eliminating the possibility of letting someone down, and that tough decision up front, to say no, will save you a ton of stress that would come with juggling and trying to multitask with a busy schedule.
Give it a try in 2015. When you have projects to work on and someone wants to throw some requests your way, think about whether you really want to take them on, and if not, say no. Put your focus where you want it to be, not where someone else wants it. Worry about your sanity and inner-peace before you aim to please others. Both your work, and stress levels, will see nice improvements. As a bonus, you'll be known as a top notch service provider and someone that does what they say - people will know if you say yes or are helping them, the task at hand is sure to get done.
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