How to Say No to Your Boss Subtlely - Enough is Enough

It was my 3rd month working the equivalent of 2 positions since the person under me left. With the CEO's need to constantly cut down on overhead costs, she hadn't been replaced immediately and it was assumed that I could bridge that gap in the meantime.

Whilst it was an opportunity to learn more of the detail and the mechanics of that position, It was exhausting to have twice the work demands. Quite honestly, I wasn't physically able to complete both these positions tasks to time or to standard, and this was hugely demoralising. As my work load increased, my standards fell on certain areas. And definitely some things which ought to have been done regularly were slipping. When i was asked why I hadn't done a simple quick task yet, it was the last straw. 

To me it felt like a huge elephant was in the room and only I could see it. The reason why X, Y and Z had not been done is because we were short staffed. The person who used to do that task has left and i cannot perform 2 persons job unless i stayed till 10pm every night.

That was when i decided enough was enough. I had to tell them the real fact of the matter. I decided to tell the Head of Divison the real truth of the matter and this is how I did it:

1.) Let your boss know you first understand his position - I told him I understood reports needed to be delivered and deadlines had to be met and I understood some of these outputs were not being churned out to time.

2.) Tell him the reason - this often one simple sentence: we were missing one person from the team. 

3.) Tell him the consequences and make him aware you're aware of what's really doing down - I told him that things were slipping, and that this wasn't because i wasn't putting the hours, i was, but that this was unsustainable. I also told him that the fact that this role had not been replaced, was never mentioned as if it was always all up to me to complete these extra tasks.

4.) Suggest a solution - Instead of just moaning and complaining, come up with solutions. In my case I reminded him that if I continued working 1.6 roles the CEO would come to expect that this was doable and that we didn't need to replace the person we had lost. We had to get a replacement in soon to be able to keep up with the demands.

In my scenario, but boss was understanding. To be honest I had a feeling it was known, but they were just trying to see how far they could push me to carry this weight. If they could get away with it, they had saved on costs and they could get their bonuses. But at what cost to me? I had to let them know that this was not acceptable and that I knew what was going on.

I hope you find the strength to stand up to your bosses. This does not have to be a confrontation, it is to get them to understand your position. A flat no is never going to get you anywhere.