how to say no professionally

How to say no professionally

Just say no. Easier said than done, I know and especially now. It’s really, it’s harder than ever to create your own healthy boundaries around your time and energy and this is because all of our natural physical boundaries have all been taken away.

So the time when you were travelling, you were unavailable. The time when you were in the office, you were unavailable or in a meeting, you were unavailable.

All of those physical boundaries have been stripped away, plus the usual very basic, very primal fear of rejection that we all have and all carry and fear that we will be rejected if we say no to somebody.

Plus, if we have certain conditioning always putting the needs of others before ourselves, that’s another layer that makes it super difficult to create and maintain healthy boundaries.

But if you don’t especially during this time, you will crash and burn. You will burn out. So there are three things. Three main tips to help you maintain right here during this situation right now.

How to say no professionally

So the first one is to block out time in your calendar for the priorities, for the things that absolutely have to get done, plus also the things that will help maintain you and sustain you during this time. So whether that is a walk outside for 30 minutes, a yoga lesson, a therapy session, a coaching session, whatever it is block that time out in your calendar.

Because then when people say, can you do this? Can you do that? Can you do this for me? You can say no, i’m sorry. I’m full because you are. The second one is to create physical boundaries super, super important right now. So if you’re at home and there’s no one around or if you’re at home and there are loads of people around, create boundaries around your working hours, that’s a key one. And state these to everybody that needs to know so physical boundaries around your working hours. Also, another physical boundary is a door.

So when that door is closed, that means i’m not to be interrupted or if you really can’t do either of those.

If you are in a shared space in a home with lots of other people, putting your headphones on is another way to do that so a physical boundary and state it really clearly and then hold it.

The third one is that there will always be boundary pushes. You know those people who go “oh go on” “oh but.. ” and all of this and they really tap in to your old conditioning and that fear of being rejected.

So for those people, or, if you generally find it difficult, it’s always really helpful to have a stock phrase up your sleeve. So something like “thanks for asking, but i’m afraid of absolutely full right now. I can’t take anything else on”

Because remember, you can’t. It’s all blocked out in your calendar. So there they are. My top three tips for creating and maintaining healthy boundaries.

Please I would love to hear from you about your own boundaries and on this subject. 

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