The Power of No

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Learning to say no is a healthy sign in a child's development:

If your toddler's favorite word is "no!" and his default position is defiance, relax. New research suggests that willful behavior in very young children is both normal and a sign of a healthy parent-child relationship.

For adults the reluctance or inability to say "no" is a major source of stress:

A prime reason for our modern busyness is, of course, our inability to just say no: no to the recurring, unproductive meeting, no to volunteering to be class parent, no to the endless demands on our time.

The WSJ writer suggests creating a set of personal policies (example: "I don't take calls on weekends") that reflect one's values, then broadcasting them to family, friends, and business associates. Saying "no" should become easier.

Further thoughts:
1) I'd rather do a few things well than a lot of things poorly.
2) The people doing the asking (e.g., salesmen) are often not my friends.
3) For both the employee and employer's sake it's important that written policies explain clearly the circumstances when after-hours work will be necessary. (For most of my career employers assumed that they could call on my services 24/7; in 2015 that assumption is no longer operative.)
4) It's nearly always better to get the "no" out of the way sooner than later.