WHEN YOU JUST CAN'T TAKE ANY MORE....

I just read a really good article shared on Mashable about what to do when you are at your limit and someone wants you to do more.  We are starting second semester and all want to do our best.  We are dedicated professionals and we struggle saying no.  Sometimes though, you just can't cope.  Let's assume you are already accessing support from either the OTIP Employee Assistance Programme Posaction or from the board with Sheppell but you just can't take any more on.  What do you do.  Well this article gives three examples of what to say, depending on who is making the request.
If it's your supervisor (your principal, someone in admin or department leader) try this(take right out of the article):
OK! I can definitely tackle this, but I’d like to review something before I proceed.  Right now my current priorities are: [list them in order]. Would you like this new assignment to be my top priority? If so, that’s no problem, but it means that—since we’re pushing several other items down the list—all of my other projects will get completed slightly later. I can create a timeline of when everything will be completed, if that’s helpful to you. Thanks!
If it's a colleague who wants you to do a little bit more, try saying:
Hey! I can definitely help you with this. However, right now I am working on a different project that’s a top priority for my department. Try giving a specific date and time when you would be able to help them out and see if that works for them.
The last part of the article was talking about dealing with requests from clients.  Now in our job students (and perhaps parents) are our clients.  The article suggests you additional billing or shifting timelines, neither of which work for us.  I would suggest you always deal with students and parents in a timely fashion.
The article also suggested Remember, too, that whoever is making this “ridiculous and unreasonable” request is probably just as swamped and stressed out as you are. Try to be compassionate.  I would add, it's ok to say NO.  Just keep it professional.
You can read the original article yourself here:
http://mashable.com/2015/01/29/drowning-in-work/?utm_cid=mash-com-fb-main-link

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