Dear Lee – I Can't Keep Up!

Lately, my boss has been giving me so many tasks, I feel like I can't keep up. I'm good at prioritizing, but it's gotten to the point where I can't even get started on one thing without being interrupted with yet another thing to do. How do I make him realize that he's overwhelming me?

Sincerely,

Too Many Balls to Juggle

I am assuming that quitting is not an option …

I, too, have worked with a boss who could sometimes be overwhelming. Most of the time, things were just busy. Periodically, however, my boss would go into overdrive (or, as her staff affectionately termed it, "on a tear"), but this was generally in response to external factors that demanded more of her as well. So what did I do?

I made sure I was as organized as possible. And I wasn't afraid to ask for guidance. For example, I would say, "You've asked me to do A, B, C, D, E, and F – which has priority?" Or, I would tell her which tasks I could do in one day, and which tasks would have to wait until the next. This way, if one of the tasks I planned to do the next day needed to be done immediately, she could tell me.

It's not that you're asking your boss to be organized for you. Instead, it's about keeping your boss informed about what you're doing and about what you can realistically accomplish, as well as finding out what is most important to your boss. And most likely, your boss doesn't expect you to get the million things he's thrown at you done immediately. Or, at least, let's hope!