Saying No with Grace

Individuals who over-commit and have a hard time saying no (to colleagues, friends, family, etc.) will have a very difficult time achieving their goals. Time is already scarce and you need as much of it allocated to your priorities as possible to be successful. Managing time effectively means learning to say no with grace - saying no consistently without saying the N word. Some of these methods may not seem appropriate but utilizing scarce resources to their fullest requires unusual measures. Learn to politely excuse yourself from any situation you feel is a waste of time or not part of your priorities. Manage (excruciating painful) detail-oriented people effectively. These are the individuals that have to spell out every letter of every word. Speed up an individual's agonizingly slow conversation without being rood or offensive. Below are a few examples of how to say no with grace: Impromptu Discussions How many times do you walk the hallways at work and someone stops you to chit chat? If you add up the minutes wasted from these impromptu meetings (i.e., for a one-week period) it would be truly eye-opening. If these discussions do not pertain to your job function then cut them off. It's very simple: Excuse me Ted I would love to talk to you right now but I have an urgent matter I have to take care of back at my desk. Please let's catch up next week. Of course by next week something else will come up-Ted will eventually get the hint. It's as simple as that! Your time is too valuable. Slow Talker This drives me up the wall! Instead of getting to the point immediately they have to take their sweet time and describe every little detail. Be a nice asshole and help speed them along. You probably already know what the punch line is and if not guess! If you're wrong the first time, guess again-they'll get the hint and finally get to the punch line. Also listen to every 3rd or 4th word-believe me you won't miss a thing. Without hurting their feelings attempt to speed them along. I do it with my wife all the time. She is extremely detail oriented and has to articulate every excruciating detail. It drives me crazy! If I don't speed her along I will probably lose a good 4 hours a week. Who can afford to throw away 4 hours a week? I certainly can't!