Defiance is often thought as a negative trait, but as our guest on this podcast explains, it can actually be a positive force both in the workplace and in our lives generally. 

Dr. Sunita Sah, a professor at Cornell and an organizational psychologist, is the author of “Defy: The Power of No in a World that Demands Yes,” published earlier this year.

Sah’s book explores why people say yes and go along at work and in other relationships in their lives, even when they want to say no. In this conversation, she explains how most people are conditioned to see defiance as a negative trait. Instead, she argues, defiance based on deeply held values can be a positive.

She discusses how to evaluate a situation where you may want to defy, how we need to train ourselves to see defiance in a different light and why it is so difficult to make that transition. Sah also addressed defiance in the legislative workplace and the complications that can arise in a complex hierarchy. 

Sah also explained that while defying is not risk free, going along when you know you should object carries its own hazards.

Sah will conduct a webinar on May 5 at noon MT as part of this year’s NCSL Legislative Staff Week. 

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