The Power of 'No': Escape From Overload and Focus on What Matters

One of the most important things a leader can do is to help people stay focused. That means having the courage to say “no.” It also means having the willingness to protect the interests of your organization when people push back.

People can wear you down by pointing out reasons why the idea can’t work, advocating for initiatives that would be more beneficial and finding opportunities that could be seized. All of those reasons, initiatives and opportunities could be important. However, leaders need to weigh the possible benefits against the potential drawback of overextending the organization. It does no good to launch a new system if no one has the time or bandwidth to learn how to use it.