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how to Say “No” to 4 kinds of people at Work
Sometimes saying “yes” at work is the way to go. Yes to more responsibility, and yes to that promotion you have been eyeing but other times, you need to decline. No, you are too busy or you are not interested. Of course, how you phrase your reply makes a big difference. With that in mind, here are four kinds of people you need to say “no” to at work and how to go about it.
- To Your Boss
Your line manager asks if you are able to take on a little more work, but the thing is you actually can’t because you have other projects on your plate. It can be a little intimidating to push back when your boss asks you to do something. Skip the flat, “no” or an awkward, passive aggressive answer. Instead, try, “Thank you so much for thinking of me for this, but I was planning to spend this week working on (the particular project)”
- To Your Co-worker
Your co-worker asks you to help her with a pet project that you have very little interest in. Now, if you have time, you might want to consider helping anyhow, because you will strengthen your relationship with your colleague and be seen as someone who is willing to pitch in. But if you are turning the opportunity down, just be sure to skip a fake excuse about how you would help if only you were not so swamped. If you say that, but then take on other new projects, he or she will know you were uninterested. Instead, try something closer to the real reason.
- To Your Employees
Yes, you want to encourage brainstorming and love when your employees come to you with new ideas. However, sometimes you already have a clear plan in mind, and what you would really like is for your employees to execute and follow it. Of course, “No, we’ll be doing it my way,” makes you look like you did not need a team to work with afterall. Instead, you want your message to be that while you appreciate employee input in general, this is a project where it’s really important everyone follow the plan exactly. Remember: You always want to offer a “why” in addition to your “no” so that it doesn’t just sound like you are stubborn.
- To a Client
You do not want to come off as patronizing to someone who is, well, your patron. Sure, he hired you because you are good, but because he’s paying you, he gets a say in the overall direction of your work.
The first thing you should do is let the client share his thoughts fully. You may be tempted to cut him off as soon as he starts into an idea that you know would be unpopular or infeasible, but if you stop him there, he will think you might not get it. As he speaks, listen for key concerns he’s mentioning or key issues he thinks his new approach is solving. Then, when you respond with your plan, emphasize how you are addressing the same issues as opposed to how you are shutting down his plan.
