'Hindi ko na kaya yung workload ko. How do I say no to more tasks?'
Q: My company has been trying to cope with the pandemic and unfortunately, that meant letting go of some employees just to stay afloat. Hindi nawala yung workload na 'yon, na-distribute lang sa mga natira. And with all the changes and new projects, parang every day, may bagong task na kailangan gawin. I'm struggling with balancing everything on my plate pero 'di ko alam kung paano sabihin sa boss ko. How do I bring this up without making it seem like I'm not a team player?
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What we're experiencing right now is unprecedented in many ways, and on top of that, there's the mental and emotional impact of it all. It can be especially stressful if you're still trying to get work done. Companies expect *a lot* from their employees. You may feel lucky to even have a job amid a pandemic, but if you're trying to balance too many tasks (with more expected to come in in the future), there's a good chance you're not doing your best work.
Cosmopolitan asked Sheila Tan, a meta coach and neuro-semantics trainer, what can you do? And more importantly, what should you say?
How to say no to extra work
The first step is to approach your boss and determine what your priorities are. Once those are listed, say something like, "Okay, we agree that these are my priorities. If you want me to work on this then I would have less time to work on the others. Which one would you want me to take care of first?"
This is a good conversation to have—and initiate—with your boss because you're not complaining or attacking. It's "solution-oriented and you give the boss a choice." Now, there's a chance that your boss will say you'll need to do everything and everything is *important*—may ganun talaga—then you can be upfront about the possibility that the quality of your work will suffer. It can be daunting to speak to your boss about this struggle, but if you keep saying yes, your boss will assume that you're taking it well.
It's also important to have a conversation with yourself if you're feeling unmotivated or you're unable to adapt. According to Sheila, "For an employee to be performing at their peak, it has to be a combination of 'I'm challenged' and 'I enjoy what I do.' So if you're not enjoying what you do anymore, there's a tendency for you to sort of slack off. Maybe something that used to take you two hours will take you half a day 'cause every five minutes, you go, 'Omg, what am I doing? Why am I doing this? I don't want to do this anymore.'"
Pause and align with yourself: "Is it because I'm stressed over something like the pandemic or a family member being sick. Do I feel sad because I'm not able to see my friends? Or is my work something that's too cumbersome for me already?" Sheila recommends doing what you love to do that'll give you financial security.
If it's work-related, you have a choice to make. Your job pays for the bill, but you don't love it. Can that be motivating enough for you? If not, can you add purpose or meaning to what you do so that you're more motivated and more passionate about it?
Sheila says, "The word 'passion' seems to be everywhere. It sounds like something we're looking for. It's like a gem, like a treasure hunt. But having more purpose in what we do is within ourselves. We can ask ourselves, 'What value could I give to what I'm doing so that it motivates me? What meaning can I give to what I'm doing that'll make it feel like I'm doing something that's worthwhile?"
Learn more about how to say no to extra work by watching the video below.
Sheila Tan is a meta coach and neuro-semantics trainer. She is also the president of Altius Coaching and Consulting. Sheila co-founded Flourish Circle, a community-based solution for mental health. Her advocacies include HIV awareness, women empowerment, and mental health. You can contact her through Altius Coaching's website, Facebook, or Instagram.
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