How-To Say “No” at Work

Time is a precious commodity. You use it or lose it. Most of us do not have all the time to participate in the activities that we enjoy. Often, we are short on time because of saying “yes” when we should say “no”.

As a business professional, saying “yes” can become habitual. You may be taking advantage of every opportunity to improve your career. However, always saying “yes” can end up making us miss deadlines and decreasing our quality of work.

Before you say “yes” to your next project, gain a perspective on your daily tasks and the amount of time that it takes to complete a project. Then learn to say “no”.

STEP ONE: Learn Your Priorities

Everyone has daily tasks. What are yours? Write them down and figure out how much time they take to complete every day. After you figure out what you HAVE to do, you can figure out what else you CAN do.

STEP TWO: Check Your Calendar

We often respond to requests with a quick “yes”. Stop!
Check your calendar before you agree to your projects. This will give you the opportunity to evaluate whether the project is realistic in your schedule.

STEP THREE: Trust Your Gut

Your intuition can be the best indicator of whether you should accept a new project. If deliberating the task makes you feel stressed then re-consider accepting the new responsibility.

Fear of telling a person “no” leads many professionals to undertake new projects. This type of person is commonly referred to as a people pleaser. Eventually, being a people pleaser leads to exhaustion and burn-out.
Learn to tell people “no” before you become overwhelmed.

Tricks to Tell Client, Boss, or Co-Worker “No”

Be Honest. It’s worse to give them false hope of you helping.
Suggest an Alternative Service Provider
Ask For a Raincheck, or tell them when you CAN help them.
Clearly State Your “No” Without Being Defensive. Simply tell them you can’t take on their project with your current workload.

Sometimes, the best things to do in life is minimize. Saying “no” minimizes your clutter of projects.