Give em' an inch...

...and they'll take a mile.

I'm sad to say that this is true in too many facets of relationships, especially working relationships. I had to have a conversation with an assistant today about taking on too much. He's outgoing, eager to do an outstanding job. Suddenly I saw a black hole being created for this young buck -- a hole that I have made for myself many times. You take on a project, or offer to do something extra, only to be told how they want you to do it; this turns out to be much more difficult than the project was originally intended to be. It has been proven that those who get the most done also have the most to do. But, there is a fine line between competency and being completely taken advantage of.

1.) NEVER ask others how your project should be done. Just tell them how you intend to get it done. They will surely tell you if they don't like your ideas, so don't solicit their advice. You're going to get an earfull anyway.

2.) Use specific time lines. "I intend to use (this/specific) picture for the website for the month of January." OR "Yes, that's a great idea, I'll think about using that next year."

3.) Don't be afraid to say no. "I'm sorry, I don't have time to take that on with all of the work I'm doing to invigorate the departmental website."

4.) Learn to delegate. The art of delegation is also being able to pick the best people for the job, otherwise you end up having to spend all of your time training them.

If anyone has a good tactic, please share.