No. Nope. Uh-uh. Naw. Nah. No Way.

The many many many things you should say No to…at work….I’ve just read this Fast Company conversation with Kristin Muhlner, CEO of NewBrand Analytics on the nine no-no’s which help her manage.

Interesting. I’ve had No (as in how am I spending my most productive waking hours and in those hours, am I moving forward the projects which are of most interest to me) intensely top of mind since reading Fast Company’s saying “No” Habit Challenge. As a result, I’ve said No to how I scheduled my calendar in the past and said No to experiencing regret for having said No.

But back to No in the workplace. In my past work life as an attorney, law firm manager and employee, I’ve not been able to say NO universally to:

• Clients
• Deadlines (from billion dollar deal closing or delivery of attorney performance reviews)
• Participating in events which would advance me professionally

Note: on these three point, the can’t say No trend has continued as I meander professionally through the world of startups and tech investment.

But yes some universal, definite No’s do exist in the workplace:

• No to micro-managing and unnecessary oversight of employees/colleagues. If you want to grow professionally, scale your team or attract the right future talent, then trust, empower and get out of the way.
• No to continuing email conversations beyond their natural expiry date. There is nothing more draining than endless “me too” “well done” type email commentary or “thanks” email chains. Restrain yourself from commenting and unnecessarily filling up inboxes. And I’d also add, say No to keeping people on an email chain when they no longer need to be involved.

Then there are things which I categorize as "No but Maybe" times in a career lifecycle. I agree there is no prize or sainthood granted for pulling all-nighters (or if there is, I'm still waiting for delivery) however there are times in a career when you need to work extended hours to learn or hone your craft. No escaping it. Whether a hockey player, computer programmer or an attorney, you have to put in the time required to gain knowledge or master a skill set.

What about don't even think about saying No? Do these exist in the workplace? On the top of my NO! Don’t say NO in the workplace list: Networking. Universally saying you will never attend networking events is career suicide. Saying NO to attending networking events is like telling someone that keeping your head down and doing good work will get you ahead in the workplace or that Karma grants salary increases. Be strategic and selective in which work-related networking events you choose to attend, but don’t apply a universal NO to opportunities to share your knowledge, to meet colleagues beyond the radius of your cubicle or to being informed of developments in your chosen profession. There are many many many ways to killing your career, take No To Networking off that list.