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An Eight-Week Guided Journal

Choose what you actually want to carry.

Most days fill up with yeses nobody remembers giving: a message answered the moment it arrived, a favour that was easier to agree to than to refuse, a commitment inherited so long ago that nobody recalls the question. What Deserves My Yes is an eight-week guided journal for noticing those asks, and answering them on purpose.

Each day, you name one thing asking for your time or energy, pause long enough to notice what saying yes would cost, and finish one honest sentence about your real answer. It is not asking you to say no to everything, and nothing needs to be dramatic. At the end of eight weeks you hold a written, ever-growing record of what you actually chose, one small answer at a time.

Front cover of What Deserves My Yes, an eight-week guided journal by The Inner Listener
What Deserves My Yes is here!

Available now on Amazon.

Where should it be sent?

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Not sure yet? Try a free preview.

Get the front matter plus your first two days as a free PDF — see exactly how it works before you commit to all eight weeks.

Download the free preview (PDF)

Who it is for, and what you get

You finish with: A pause before you say yes, and forty-eight honest answers in your own handwriting.

This journal is for you if…

  • You say yes before you have finished hearing the ask
  • You end a week tired from things you do not remember choosing
  • You feel a small flicker of resentment after agreeing
  • You find it easier to agree than to explain

After eight weeks, you will have…

  • A pause that is yours: a few seconds between the ask and your answer, where choice lives
  • Forty-eight honest answers in your own words
  • A map of where your yeses go, from work and family to money, attention and the future
  • More yeses you mean. Not fewer yeses, but yeses you chose

A day in the journal

Three short lines a day. This is how one page works.

Week 1, day 2 · an example entry

The Ask

A colleague asked me to cover a meeting on Friday afternoon.

The Cost

My quiet morning, which is the only time I get to think properly.

The Answer

I can take the first half, and I will tell them so before lunch.

An illustration written for this page. It is not a reader’s own entry.

When would you finish?

Pick a start date to see when you would finish.

Know someone who would like this?

Send them the page, so they know it is on its way.

What is inside

Eight weeks, eight places asks gather

  • Week 1. What work is asking of me
  • Week 2. What family and other people expect
  • Week 3. The shoulds I set for myself
  • Week 4. The favours I say yes to
  • Week 5. The habits and routines I never chose
  • Week 6. What money is asking of me
  • Week 7. What my attention is asking of me
  • Week 8. What the future is asking me to commit to now
  • A simple daily rhythm: The Ask, The Cost, The Answer
  • 48 guided daily pages, six a week, so a missed day or two never affects anything beyond that week
  • A short, honest review at the end of every week
  • An overview of the whole practice, and a final review
  • Blank pages at the back for days that need more room

This is not about becoming someone who says no to everything. It is a small, repeatable practice of noticing what is asking for your yes, and answering on purpose.

Not sure which journal to start with? Take the two-minute quiz →

Look inside

Real pages from What Deserves My Yes. Tap a page to enlarge it.

A page from What Deserves My Yes: the welcome page A page from What Deserves My Yes: the shape of the practice A page from What Deserves My Yes: how to use the journal A page from What Deserves My Yes: the first day

These pages come from the free preview. Download the whole preview (PDF)

Questions before you buy

Where can I buy it?

It is available now on Amazon, and printed to order.

How long does each day take?

A few minutes. Every journal uses a simple, structured daily format that walks you through exactly what to fill in, so you do not need to know what to write or how to start.

What if I miss a day, or fall behind?

Each week stands entirely on its own, so missing a day or two never affects anything beyond that week. I Missed a Day. Now What? is a short read for exactly that moment.

Do I need any journalling experience?

No. Nothing here asks you to write well. One honest sentence is enough.

Can I try it first?

A free preview of the first pages will be added to this page when the journal is out, so you can see exactly how it works.

More questions? See the FAQ →