How do I get better at making hard tradeoffs and saying no?

You already know how to sort what matters. The hard part is the moment of cost, when choosing one thing means letting another go, and someone will be disappointed. That is not a skills gap. That is the weight every real decision carries. Saying no feels unkind because you can see what the other person wanted. But a yes to everything is a quiet no to the thing that actually matters. Every leader who protects anything has to disappoint someone. The discomfort you feel is a sign you take people seriously, not a sign you are doing it wrong. Next time you must say no, name the tradeoff out loud. Tell the person what you are protecting and why. You are not just refusing them. You are choosing, honestly, in the open. That turns a hard no into a decision people can respect.