Political Dilemmas at Work: How to Maintain Your Integrity and Further Your Career

Get Real about Pleasing Other People

Doing what other people want can help accelerate your career as you build your reputation for cooperation. Many bosses love having people who fall over themselves to do their bidding. If you build a reputation for pleasing people, more requests are sure to follow, perhaps offering great career enhancing opportunities—everyone loves a team player, right? The trouble is that as your reputation for being Mr. Nice Guy grows, so may your habit of trying to do everything. Because you’re in demand, the workload can easily overwhelm you. Trying to get more resources can be difficult in these cost conscious days.

The habit of saying yes can be a difficult one to break. For years you have probably prided yourself on being responsive to others and at the same time, accomplishing a great deal of work. You’ve achieved the payback of having people praising your achievements. But it is impossible to please all of the people all of the time. If you’re in this dilemma, you are going to have to start saying no so that you can concentrate on the real priorities.

A flat refusal with no reason behind it is not going to win you friends or respect. But the way you say no and press back requests will make a difference. If you respond to the demand in a considerate way, by talking through the details and explaining the reasons, you are likely to gain respect and understanding. This can happen even if the person you’re talking to doesn’t like what he ...