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In the workplace, I am often asked for help by my boss, my team mates, and random co-workers who seem to appear only when they have a problem. The hardest part in responding is saying “no.” After all, you might need their help some day and you don’t want to make enemies in the workplace.

There is no room to be timid in your responses. Most people treat their boss and their boss’ boss with the highest priority. Yes, it is career limiting not to do so, but that builds a culture of servility and it can grate on your nerves very quickly. The customer should be the top priority and not your boss, or your boss’s boss, and definitely not the co-worker who demands favors in a loud voice.

Here is my criteria for prioritization.

• “I need to take a decision about the business.” These co-workers will always be in my inner circle, because they have much to teach me.
• “I need to make a plan.” These co-workers are in the business of preventing problems by thinking ahead, may their numbers flourish!
• “I have an operational review.” These co-workers want to tell a good story to drive change in review meetings. However if they had done the above, there will be no urgency in this request. It will not be a last-minute request either.
• “I have to give this information to my boss (or who ever).” These people are the clueless in the workplace. They are spurred to action only when their boss asks for information. You have to be careful, but depending on the situation, I try to deflect these requests and ask them to have their boss call me directly. Or, knowing that this is bad behavior, I try to think of ways to raise accountability in the workplace.
• “I am curious.” These are the time wasters. They exist in hordes, especially in the execute suite. They will ask a question and their minions will scurry around trying to answer the question. My response to such questions is, “Yes, I am curious too. Can you get me the answer?”
• “I have a last minute request.” Here is where judgment is crucial. Is it a genuine emergency? After all, things don’t always happen as intended, and we all get into a jam. We have to watch each other’s back. If the request is out of laziness or sloppiness, I usually just hang up on the person or move their email to a “do not respond” folder.
• “I have a random request.” I usually just hang up on the person or move their email to a “do not respond” folder. Some people pass these requests to a hapless co-worker, but if you don’t try to squash these requests, it will come back to haunt you some day. Your co-worker might do the same to you.

Be careful in how you apply this advice. Be firm, and set your boundaries at work very clearly. If you get into trouble, it is a sign of clumsy implementation or a lack of situational awareness.