How researchers can say & defend "No" to partners and peers

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Researchers need to build the muscle of saying and defending "No." You're effective when you're selective. Here's how to say effectively say no:

Why is it important to say "No" to partners and peers? @JamesClear's book "Atomic Habits," says it best: “When you say no, you are only saying no to one option. When you say yes, you are saying no to every other option. No is a decision. Yes is a responsibility.”

1. Use your company's priorities as a lens It's hard to defend a "No" without knowing what's important. Ask yourself: - What *is* important to the team? - What are the main metrics & KPIs that need to be improved? - What can you afford to *not* get done for the company?

2. Communicate your priorities whenever you can Whether you work remotely or not, communicating your needs is important when you're defending your "No." Make sure you also provide context on WHY those priorities are important to both you AND the company.

3a. Help them understand trade-offs in the research Ask: "I see you want us to research X. Here's the current set of priorities we're working on that align to the company goals & metrics. What should we STOP doing to include this ask?"

3b. More on trade-offs Help partners and peers understand that their quick requests explicitly affect quality. "We can run that research in that time frame but our confidence in it will be low. Is that ok? Mind if we get some more time?"

3c. Even more on trade-offs Help them understand that if research is a bottleneck, then do without! "If we need to get it now, then it's not worth it. If it is important, let's work together to rework timelines."

Researchers need to work on building the muscle of pushing back on random requests. It takes time, and it can get uncomfortable. But saying "No" is a key step to having research respected at your company. ^more on defending your research in our book: appleandbanana.org/bookwaitlist