Strategies for pushing back on excessive workload.

[IDontHateRainbows]

I've got too much work to feasibly do in my hours, already do a few extra hours unpaid and they keep pushing more on me. Not in a position to leave. It's projecty type work on top of some operational work and managing one person who needs a fair amount of hand holding. Mid senior post, small company, not enough staff due to lack of £££ so I'm doing the work of 3 people.
Had it today just finished a big project and now they want more from me.
How do I nicely push back?

I've had projects on the back burner for months but then unpredictable stuff happens and gets in the way. Now they want more.

I should be paid twice my salary to do half the work but alas!

"Yes, I can do xvyz, what would you like me to drop instead?"

I've asked this but no help. I also listed all the jobs I was doing and how much % of my contracted hours they take, linkingvto previous meeting notes and discussions. It was at least two people's job. Made no difference. I had to leave, they recruited several people to cope.

I'm thinking to tokenistically start some tasks but not do them fully unless pushed eg (trying not to be outing) they want a review of all x, I can review the most significant of x which is 2 of the most frequently used ones, then I've started the ball rolling, if they push on where are the rest I will do them but I reckon they will move on to something else by then (reviewing x will take some time, involve other stakeholders so not an immediate task)

Just say you don’t have capacity. If the additional work is a priority then something else will be dropped. Ask for an occ health referral for work related stress. Speak to union rep if you are a member.

There no way around this without uncomfortable conversations that involve you being assertive.

Problem is I'm not in a strong position as I'm on a fixed term contract which is due to be renewed, I've been given every indication it will be, within the next 3 months, but until then I can't rock the boat. And no taking time off for stress or anything like that.

I don't want to be overworked but I would prefer to be overworked than out of work. So i need strategies that don't involve going nuclear.

Already at full capacity plus working unpaid overtime, so if X needs doing, then A, B and C will need to be dropped to make space in the schedule.

Do you want it renewed? I would have been looking for a different job…

I do, I like the job, the people and getting loads of development. Not bad enough to leave. Once perm i may have more leverage to push back but I need to get through now.

I just don't do it.

"Why isnt this done"
"Because I had to do this, this and this first"
"Oh, why didn't you tell us"
"I did, on this date"
"Oh, when can you get it done by?"
"This date"
"Can't it be done quicker"
"Yes, if I don't do either this, this or this"
"Oh"

Rinse and repeat every 3 months.

I do what I can do within the time I've agreed to work. If stuff doesnt get done, that's my bosses failure, not mine.

I'm yet to be sacked in 25 years.

I think I'm fed up because I finished a mega project of many months, fed back to thd head honcho and he starts saying haven't you done y? I think there's more work to do.

No, there isn't more work to do. The project brief was agreed months ago and signed off i then delivered the agreed deliverables. No mention was made of y as an output. But now I haven't done y and 'there's still more work to do'.

"yes I can do that but it won't be until X because I need to prioritise Y first"

"I'm at capacity right now, could I hand off XYZ to prioritise this?"

But it really requires a proper conversation, have you mapped your workload and capacity and done a prioritisation matrix, you really need to lay it out how overworked you are and stretched beyond capacity. I'd maybe leave that for a few months until the perm contract is sorted.

It's absolutely infuriating when they act like toddlers who just want what they want, when they want it, without wanting to face the reality of what's feasible or fair to ask. I have found success with pushbacks like these, that make it sound like you're professional and keen to maintain quality standards.

'Yes, that's no problem to do shiny new thing. It will mean pressing pause on another project while it gets done or I won't be able to give it the attention it merits- would you prefer that to be X or Y?'

'Absolutely, we can prioritise shiny new thing, it will just mean we need to put boring old thing on the back burner for a bit. Which is higher priority for this quarter/before the board meeting?'.

'I can do it if an 80/20 quick pass is good enough. If it needs to be done more thoroughly we'll have to discuss pausing something else, or it just won't be feasible to add it in right now. What's most important for you/the department?'

'It can be done, yes, but realistically we can't get both that and the other ongoing projects finished to the high standards we usually deliver by X date. Which is better - get a rough draft of both finished or prioritise finishing one? My thought is we should do X because of Y, but I may have overlooked something. I'd be interested to hear your thoughts'.

Waiting for the day! The only.upside is other people are equally stretched, the company is not well financed so has to stretch the managerial/ back office staff as far as possible, so there is a cultural expectation that everyone is choka. Actually not sure if that's an upside or a downside, you get a certain ' i have to cope so you can too' mentality. But it's not just me although I'm busier than most.

Thinking of pushing back on the new y task of big project by saying I have other pieces of work waiting on this project being finished to be progressed so can we delay y? There's a small element of y i can get on with now to show willing, so maybe i do that alongside the other work that's waiting and show a plan for implementing the rest of y in a few months time. Hopefully be perm then.

This is good. He's not acting like a toddler so much as a mad king or something. But need to keep him sweet til the inks dry on the perm contract.

Could you use AI support you in your role? Maybe you could take on more comfortably if you were able to augment with AI.

Some things have landed in my lap that I have no experience of and no one to help, nothing that I would screw up badly if I got wrong but yes AI will help massively with.

Update, I spoke to second in command head honcho and queried Mad King head honcho's decision to develop the project along lines y which I got her to agree was not where the business needed to focus or would have much impact. We agreed to do a tokenistic, low cost action to tick MK's box that we have addressed this one issue (that he is OBSESSED with!) and some other project outputs that I was in agreement with. Sounds like she is finding him being a bit 'mad king' too coming in at the end with crazy solutions that make no sense.

did you get this in writing?