How to Politely Say No to Anyone at Work -The Muse

How to Politely Say No to Anyone at Work -The MuseHow to Politely Say No to Anyone at Work Sometimes saying yes at work is the way to go. Yes to that new project, yes to more responsibility, and yes to that promotion youve been eyeing. But other times, you need to decline. No, youre too busy, no youre elend interested, or no, you dont want to work until all hours of the night. Of course, how you phrase your reply makes a big difference. No, that idea sucks, is quite different from, No, Id like to take a different approach.With that in mind, here are four kinds of people you need to say no to at work- and diplomatic ways to do it. 1. To Your BossYour supervisor asks if youre able to take on a little more work, but the thing is- you cant. Youre up to your ears in other projects and you like eating dinner before 9 PM (at your apartment, not at your desk).It can be a little intimidating to push back when your babo asks you to do something. Skip the flat, no or an awkward, passive aggress ive, Well, umm, see I would, its just youve assigned me so much work in the past two weeks that Im busy working on everything else you asked, so I, uhh, dont think I can.Instead, try, Thank you so much for thinking of me for this, but I was planning to spend this week working on name of other projects. This approach works for a couple of reasons. First, its flattering that your manager thought of you (after all, you want to be top of mind when new, exciting projects come along). Second, if your boss knows this new task is more important, it invites him to say, Lets push those other projects to the backburner, and make sure youre on the same page as far as priorities go. 2. To Your Co-workerYour co-worker asks you to help her with a pet project that you have very little expertise (or interest) in. Now, if you have time, you might want to consider helping anyhow, because youll strengthen your relationship with your colleague and be seen as someone whos willing to pitch in.But if youre set on turning the opportunity down, just be sure to skip a fake excuse about how you would help if only you werent so swamped. If you say that, but then take on other new projects, shell know you were uninterested (and lied).Instead, try something closer to the real reason. It looks like this I appreciate you asking me, Julie. That sounds like an exciting initiative. Unfortunately, Im terrible with social media I have a Twitter page I never use and I cant even begin to understand Periscope, so Im afraid I wouldnt be much help.3. To Your EmployeesYes, 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 youd really like is for your employees to execute and follow it.Of course, No, well be doing it my way, never put anyone in the running for boss of the year.Instead, you want your message to be that while you appreciate employee input in general, this is a project where its rea lly important everyone follow the plan exactly. Remember You always want to offer a why in addition to your no so that it doesnt just sound like youre stubborn.Try this Thanks for sharing those suggestions, George. For this particular project, we need to follow the directions exactly as theyre outlined if we want to meet our deadline. Weve gotten approval on this plan, and any changes might send us back to the drawing board. As always, please let me know if something is unclear or if you have any questions. 4. To a ClientOK, this ones particularly tricky. You dont want to come off as patronizing to someone who is, well, your patron. Sure, he hired you because you know what youre doing but because hes paying you, he gets a say in the overall direction of your work.Sometimes you want to respond like the character in the movie who gets to give a monologue reminding the client that shes brilliant, and thats why he hired her, and the best thing he can do is let her do her job. And in the movies, the client usually agrees and backs off. However, in real life, Id discourage throwing all of your papers in the air as you discuss your brilliance, because it doesnt usually turn out the same way.Instead, 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, hell think you might not get it. As he speaks, listen for key concerns hes mentioning or key issues he thinks his new approach is solving. Then, when you respond with your plan, emphasize how youre addressing the same issues (as opposed to how youre shutting down his plan). It should go like this, I hear your concern that you arent sold on the proposed new tagline. However, I worry the one you suggested is very similar to the competition, and I know one of your main goals is to stand out. May I walk you through how we came to this one and other contenders yo u may want to consider?No one wants to be known as the person who always declines. Because after a while, people will stop asking you for things (like joining the really cool, exciting, important opportunities). So, instead, aim to be known for the considerate way in which you express yourself- even in tough conversations.