Why do people often say YES when they really mean NO?
by 
Charmaine Jay
ANSWERS: 14
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A variety of reasons. Sometimes they want to be polite. For example, Aunt Edna is offering you another piece of pie. She's so proud of this darn pie. You're full, but what the heck, just make Aunt Edna happy and pile it on. Another scenario is "Does my (not so nice looking) haircut look nice? " (asked with a big smile)... SURE, you respond. Why hurt the person's feelings.
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It is a get-out... sometimes it is difficult to say no. (As bowlonggreen says, saying no can also hurt people's feelings.)
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Most people want to be popular, and to be seen as being friendly and co-operative. Unfortunately in order to do that they often say "yes" to things they don't REALLY want to do. However... age is a wonderful thing for giving one a new perspective on this situation. It took me 50 years before I was comfortable enough to say "no" if that was really how I felt. I have no idea whether I lost any friends over this, and frankly I don't care!
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Sometimes not to hurt the feelings of others sometimes because they are afraid other times it can be peer pressure
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An instant answer is that euphimism stands up-straight on the table.
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i dont say yes when i really mean no though i am polite in a way that il tell them "let's see" or "who knows?" when i want to answer them no but i still get it depends on the situation, when i know the person that well and i know that he'l understand if i say no then il say a straight no but if not those two words might work..
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No. Really, I mean it.
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sometimes
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Of course. Doesn't everybody. "What was that"? "No I really can't take your money" (hand extended pad side up and wiggling) "ralley, it wouldn't be right" (finger's motion a come on give me wiggle)..."Do I want your money ....NO....! (opening my purse to make room for the money your going to give me because I said I didn't want it)..."hate it ralley"....
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yes
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No. ------- ADDED ------ My answer applied only to the question I originally answered, which was rejected as a duplicate. Here is an answer to the present question: "Some people are pleasing machines. They don’t know how to say no. Most of the time it’s because of the fear of rejection." "the fact that you have to say yes is a learned behavior, involving lots of beliefs and values: values such as pleasing people, helping people, being nice to people, which are honorable values. It also involves beliefs like, “I’d better say yes, if not he won’t talk to me anymore.” " Source and further information: http://ezinearticles.com/?Why-People-Say-Yes-When-Really-Mean-No&id=735531
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my question (which got flagged for duplication by someone) was a joke...my question was "when you say no, do you really mean yes" which is based on a line from the benny hill show... for the moron who flagged my question, this isn't the same...you can answer "no" to the question i posed and you still won't have an answer, because that answer could be a literal "no", or they could mean "yes" and you wouldn't know what they meant... so whoever flagged me isn't very smart and neither is the administrator who okayed and deleted it, since answers to my joke question got lumped in with this serious question which wants to know "why" people do this...i hope that whoever flagged it doesn't have to have every single joke explained to them...i really hate morons...
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People like myself have a hard time saying no, so we often do things, to please others at the expense of ourselves...I think its a huge personality flaw..
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A compulsion to be agreeable. One reason may be to avoid any potential conflict.
iwnit 
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