ON THE JOB SPECIAL ......................5 WAYS TO Avoid an Unwanted Assignment

5 WAYS TO Avoid an Unwanted Assignment





There are times when it makes sense to bite the bullet and take up an unwanted assignment at work. “Presuming your supervisor has told you to take it up, your willingness to do so would slot you straight into the `dependable' category of reportees,“ says Rajiv Burman, managing partner of Lighthouse Partners. If however, you are saddled with an assignment you want to avoid at all costs, here's how to go about doing it right, says Sreeradha D Basu.

1 Learn to Say `No'

Successful people learn how to say `no' to requests based on a framework that helps them assess value versus effort, says Swapnil Kamat, founder, CEO and chief trainer at Work Better.

“Saying `no' to more requests is one of the biggest favours you can do your organisation and yourself. Remember that saying `no' isn't evil. It allows you to be honest. There's no possible way you can do everything you're asked to do, and saying `no' is you communicating that. Pretending you can do it all is dishonest and unfair to yourself and others,“ says Kamat.

2 Get your Priorities Right

If the things you do every day are not taking you near your goals and vision, then you are definitely doing something wrong, which you need to change immediately, says Kamat.“Prioritising helps you define your vision. Because, if it is not defined, it will be difficult to understand which requests are in line with your goals and require your effort, energy and time for a longer period,“ he says.

3 Air your Concerns

If the reason for not wanting to take up the assignment is that inadequate support or unrealistic time lines are being indicated, then express your concerns clearly, says Lighthouse Partners' Burman. “Say that you are fine with taking up the assignment if the necessary resources are provided and target completion dates are made more realistic,“ he says.

4 Provide an Alternative

Always try to find a solution for the person who approached you with the request, advises Kamat. For instance, says Burman, if the reason for avoidance is that you feel that your skill sets are not adequate for the assignment, discuss this with your supervisor. “Tell him the reasons you think you are not the right person for the same, and suggest which of your colleagues might have the required skill sets to execute the assignment better. Your supervisor will surely appreciate such an input as his basic desire is to get the job done,“ says Burman.

5 Be Transparent

Make the person understand why you responded the way you did rather than just listening to your response, says Kamat. “Explaining the `why' makes the `what' simple to digest. You need to make them see your perspective,“ he says.

ET27MAR15