Ep. 8: Breaking Up with Sorry đź’”
When was the last time you said “sorry”
— not because you did something wrong —
but because you existed in someone else’s proximity?
Sorry for interrupting.
Sorry to bother you.
Sorry this might not make sense.
Sorry I’m late.
Sorry I’m annoying.
Sorry, sorry, sorry.
At this point, it’s less of an apology and more of a nervous tic.
Let’s be clear:
Most of the time, you’re not apologizing for mistakes.
You’re apologizing for taking up space.
And no, men are not doing this.
Why We’re All So Damn Sorry
Somewhere between “be nice” and “be ladylike”, women learned that confidence without apology was… rude. Aggressive. Uncomfortable.
So we started apologizing in advance:
Before asking questions
Before sharing ideas
Before interrupting
Before giving feedback
Before saying no
Not because we were wrong but because we didn’t want to offend.
The problem? Apologizing before you speak quietly tells people your words matter less.
What Excessive Apologies Actually Signal
Let’s kill the myth that over-apologizing makes you “nice.”
Here’s what it actually communicates:
❌ Uncertainty
❌ Low confidence
❌ Lack of decisiveness
❌ Easy to override
In work settings especially, apologies shift you from peer → subordinate fast. People trust your judgment less. They question your authority more. And yes — they interrupt you more. That’s not a personality flaw. That’s conditioning.
The Hoe to CEO No-Sorry Challenge (4 Weeks)
We’re not asking you to become a BITCH. We’re asking you to become intentional.
Week 1: Awareness
Notice every time “sorry” leaves your mouth.
No fixing. No judging. Just clock it.
Week 2: Pause
Feel the reflex. Interrupt it.
You don’t owe an apology just because you’re speaking.
Week 3: Replace
Swap apologies for confident language:
“Sorry for the delay” → “Thanks for your patience.”
“Sorry to interrupt” → “I want to jump in here.”
“Sorry, this might not make sense” → “Here’s what I’m thinking.”
Week 4: Intention
Now you earn your apologies back.
Use “sorry” only when you’re actually at fault.
Shockingly, that’s… not that often.
Real-Life No-Sorry Translations
Because practice > theory.
❌ “Sorry to bother you”
✅ “Can you send that over?”❌ “Sorry, can I ask a question?”
✅ “I have a question.”❌ “Sorry if this is annoying”
✅ (Delete the sentence entirely.)❌ “Sorry, I can’t take this on right now”
✅ “I’m at capacity. Is this a priority over my current work?”
Same meaning.
Wildly different energy.
The Bottom Line
Over-apologizing doesn’t make you kinder. It makes you smaller.
This year, we’re breaking up with sorry. We’re keeping our confidence. And we’re done apologizing for having a voice.
Welcome to the No-Sorry era.
