Say No to Too Much Work & "Non-Promotable Tasks"
What do you do when your supervisor asks you to take on more work than you can manage without overwhelm? What if the work isn’t related to your core work—or is "uncompensated cognitive labor”?
While working with me as her coach, a program officer at a small foundation gained clarity on her career goals. This clarity made it much easier to respond thoughtfully when her boss asked her to schedule a meeting for him. Though she did it, she said it was the “last time” and took the opportunity to suggest he hire an administrative assistant for himself. She added that she needed admin support, too.
Most of us dislike saying “no” to our boss due to conflicting desires. We want to be seen as a team player and a “go to person,” but we don’t want to risk burnout taking on too much.
It can be especially anxiety-provoking when we're asked to do tasks associated with low-status roles--scribing in meetings and planning and hosting staff parties, for instance. Katty Kay and Claire Shipman, in The Power Code: More Joy. Less Ego. Maximum Impact for Women (and Everyone), call such activities "uncompensated cognitive labor and non-promotable tasks" or NPTs. Citing research from hundreds of workplaces, it won't surprise you that they found that women do the bulk of NPTs. The authors recommend that women with management aspirations immediately stop routinely saying “yes” to such work.
Lest you fear being seen as not a team player, here are tips for anyone on how to respond when your boss asks you to take on a task that doesn’t immediately sound like one you want to do. They're based on a classic 2015 piece by Rebecca Knight in Harvard Business Review:
Be clear on your priorities for your job and your career goals.
Don’t respond immediately. Request time to think about it, then assess the task or project through the lens of your priorities. Ask for info on why it matters to your boss and to the organization. It may turn out to be a career-building opportunity—something not apparent at first.
When you’ve determined your answer is indeed a “no,” communicate it clearly, firmly and honestly. Provide a good reason, such as, “I’m not able to help you with this request now. I’ve got too much on my plate and won’t be able to do a good job on your project.”
Express compassion for your boss if you realize the task will now fall to them. If it’s genuine, let them know you’d like to help another time or possibly in smaller ways on the current project (review drafts, be a sounding board, etc.). Be a team player, just not one who’ll always do the NPTs Shipman and Kay describe.
If you sense it will be tough to say “no,” practice doing so with a trusted friend.
When my client’s new supervisor asked her to create pithy success stories from the grants portfolio, she suggested an alternative. She told him she was too busy reviewing applications and referred him to grant reports she had previously prepared--and she offered to speak with him about the reports. She later told me she felt that she would not be taken seriously as senior management material—her goal--if she regularly said “yes” to such lower-level tasks.