Saying “No” to requests you actually don’t want to do is a good way to reduce stress. Sometimes you are asked to do something that you simply don’t want to do or is beyond your capacity. It might be a favour for a colleague at work, a close friend or even your partner. In many cases your boss might be asking you to take on more work than you can actually handle. In such cases you may feel obliged to say yes but in doing so you take on the burden of their request. If the request is really something you just didn’t want to do, feelings of resentment will inevitably creep in. If the work load becomes too great, then you run the risk of feeling overwhelmed. In either case you will become stressed.

The best way to deal with such situations is to simply say “No”. If your friends are constantly asking you to do something which you don’t want to do, it is better to say no than say yes and then become resentful. Feelings of resentment will only strain your relationship. If they are your true friends they will understand. The worst case scenario is that these so called friends do not understand which begs the question of whether they are the kind of friends you should have.

If your boss asks you to take on far more than you know you are able to deal with there are a number of ways you can say no. Firstly if the time frame is too tight, you can ask for more time. If extra time is not an option you can ask for assistance, that is, strongly recommend that more resources are used to achieve the task at hand in the desired time frame. In any case, you need to be able to demonstrate to your boss the amount of work you currently have on your plate so that he/she sees that you are not just being lazy. It is important to remember that sometimes there are unavoidable deadlines and things just have to get done. However if the task is simply not achievable try to negotiate the amount time or resources needed to complete the task.

David Tomaselli is the creator of the Wholistic Development Exchange. The Wholistic Development Exchange is a web site focusing on Stress Management. Here you can access frequently updated tips, news and resources on how to reduce stress and manage stress. For the latest tips go to Stress Management Tips and Techniques. To download free E-Books go to our Free Stress Management E-Books Section.

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