Usually, a promotion at work is a good thing — more money and more prestige — but it's not always welcome. It could infringe on family time with extra hours, or take a toll on health and well-being with added stress. Or, it could place people in hard ethical situations.
What should you do if you are offered a promotion at work, but aren't really looking forward to it because it will be long hours and lots of tedium? This article recommends saying “no” to the promotion. Not only that, but making it pretty clear that you don't want to be considered for similar opportunities when they come up.
Turning down a promotion just because it looks to be inconvenient isn't wise. Maybe it made more sense when the economy was humming along and jobs were easy to come by, but not now, and not for a while. A maneuver like this is a good way to get on the short list of people to be let go, and this is not the time to be let go from a job. This is a time for keeping on top of your income streams. A lot of other things fall apart if your income goes away.
This is a time to become more valuable, more flexible, more productive, more of a team player at work. Turning down a promotion for personal convenience makes you less valuable, less flexible, and less of a team player. So I wouldn't do that.
Saying “no” to claims on your wallet are fine, though, and the article has a few good ones:
- Saying “no” to letting your third cousin's date attend an expensive wedding reception
- Saying “no” to chipping in for a colleague's birthday when you really aren't friends with them
- Saying “no” to a friend asking for a loan
- Saying “no” to letting a friend borrow your car
Bottom line for hard times: Keep the money coming in, and keep the money from going out.
I have to disagree with you. Essentially, what you are saying is that it’s not ok to say no to a demand on your time, but it is ok to say no to a demand on your money. I believe it’s ok to say no to both of them. If a promotion is going to demand more of my time and I feel like the extra money is not worth it, then I will most definitely say no. Why would that make me less valuable? What if I’m very good at what I do and taking the promotion would put me in another position that I’m not so good at? Have you ever heard the saying, “The good employees leave and the bad ones get promoted?” I work in engineering and it is sort of assumed that every entry level engineer is working towards eventually becoming a project manager. But why? Why can’t someone just become a technical guru and never become a PM if he doesn’t want to? I become more valuable by becoming better at what I do, not by taking an unwanted promotion. I don’t want the added stress and hours and all. I like designing. I don’t want to bother managing people. It’s too much trouble.
This is an interesting topic because there is more depth to it once you get past the knee-jerk reaction of either dismissing this advice as ridiculous or embracing it because it’s “convenient.”
I think it depends on where you are in life. If you’re single and in your mid 20s, this is terrible advice. You should take the promotion—otherwise you’re setting a bad precedent here.
If you’re established, have a handle on your finances, maybe have a wife and child—then I can understand this more. You want to live your life, not keep climbing the corporate ladder.
I am currently up for a “promotion” @ my company. Well more like, a position void is coming up, and I was the 1st person they felt comfortable with to take over. Unfortunately during my time here, I’ve taken on previous “promotions”, responsibilities, accountability,workload, etc… & all w/out any increase or compensation over the course of 2 years. You know, being the team player for the company, thinking in the end they’d recognize it. But after my review in march, I saw that they are not looking out for me, as I’ve looked out for them. Now that they are in a bind, because the current position is only held by one person & I am the only one remotely trained to do it, they are between a rock & a hard place. I feel it’s the perfect time to bring up my prior accomplishments & the setbacks as far as compensation over the years. I am not all that thrilled to take over this position, but if the money if right, I’m willing.