Boundaries at the Workplace
I establish boundaries by finding my voice and getting comfortable using the word “No”
I was sitting in the conference room with my boss and the rest of my team. We were discussing an annual project that no one wanted to undertake. It got tossed around like a hot potato every year and it was always a negotiation who would have responsibility for executing it. I had undertaken the project twice already and was in no mood to do it again. One of my coworkers was trying to force it on me though.
“Jennifer, you’re so good at doing this. I think you should lead it again.”
“No, I don’t want to lead that project this year.” This was not an easy thing for me to say. My heart was beating faster, but I stood my ground. I would have been really unhappy about the situation if I “took one for the team” for a second time.
“But you are the best at it!”
“I did do a good job the last two times I led the project. However, I have other priorities for this year and I prefer that someone else lead the project.”
There was a tense silence in the room.
Finally, another team member spoke up, “I can take on the project this year if no one else is interested.”
