I believe the phrase is “Ask forgiveness not permission”.
In this case it is different, you are implicitly asking for permission on a timeout clause.
Ask for no, don't ask for yes (2022)
81–90 of 286 posts
Re: Ask for no, don't ask for yes (2022)
#82This is a recipe for disaster the first time you break something. Getting a yes or a no indicates that your boss is aware of it. When you’re in the hot seat, and someone asks “Who approved this?”, the truthful answer is that no one approved it.
It really depends on the culture of your organisation and how effective management is. If there is nobody that can act like this at your org it shows that your leadership team suffers from failure to delegate.
> It really depends on the culture of your organisation and how effective management is. If there is nobody that can act like this at your org it shows that your leadership team suffers from failure to delegate.
I think it's more than just that - upthread I posted that I used this technique for over a decade against a difficult party.
This approach is, briefly, for CYA: It's for when you are in the following situation:
You have to do something and will be punished if you don't, but a stakeholder is being difficult and/or hostile. They can delay you or outright sabotage you just by silence and/or bike-shedding.
Re: Ask for no, don't ask for yes (2022)
#83Earlier quoted context omitted.
How do you actually word this? "We plan to defragment the thingamajig on March 1st. We're reaching out to those who might have an interest in case this might cause problems. Please let us know if you have concerns about the defragment. If we don't hear from you by March 1st, the thingamajig will be defragged." Something like this?
Hey, we need to do XYZ by April 1st. Let me know if you think that's a problem.
That’s still ambiguous. There’s no default action listed if no response is given. Listing the default action is your CYA that a non response is approval of the default
Re: Ask for no, don't ask for yes (2022)
#84>Hey, boss, I am going to install action X, which should solve the XYZ problems we’ve been having. Will take care of this on Monday unless I hear differently from you.
Great Pete, that means you've finished all the work from the current sprint and from the next and you've searched the backlog and didn't find anything to work on. Otherwise you wouldn't have wasted time on this.
Since you have this free time, I have a task for you.
Re: Ask for no, don't ask for yes (2022)
#85This is a critical skill in big companies where everyone is swamped and busy and things get lost. I do this all the time when I’m dealing with people who don’t answer their email, or who tend to stall and delay approvals, or people who are just very busy. I’ll Email and describe the problem and then say the magic phrase “ If I don’t hear back from you in [N] days , I am going to do XYZ on [DAY N].” This way I’m not a…
> "Occasionally someone will come back weeks later, angry that I did XYZ without telling them..."
Something fishy about this comment. Apparently you "do this all the time", spelling out the magic phrase you use like a template. Are you sure this is your anecdote and not a projection of how you'd like to be operating at work, as per the main article?
I'm trying to imagine the scene where you "show the paper trail" to achieve victory over your angry colleagues! That's when my bullshit detector is all up in the red zone.
Re: Ask for no, don't ask for yes (2022)
#86This is a critical skill in big companies where everyone is swamped and busy and things get lost. I do this all the time when I’m dealing with people who don’t answer their email, or who tend to stall and delay approvals, or people who are just very busy. I’ll Email and describe the problem and then say the magic phrase “ If I don’t hear back from you in [N] days , I am going to do XYZ on [DAY N].” This way I’m not a…
To whom it may concern,
I am planning to leave the company in 20 business days unless I get a substantial raise.
Re: Ask for no, don't ask for yes (2022)
#87[deleted]
Re: Ask for no, don't ask for yes (2022)
#88Earlier quoted context omitted.
How do you actually word this? "We plan to defragment the thingamajig on March 1st. We're reaching out to those who might have an interest in case this might cause problems. Please let us know if you have concerns about the defragment. If we don't hear from you by March 1st, the thingamajig will be defragged." Something like this?
That's a bit long. "We're planning on defragging the thingamajig on March 1st unless objections are raised. Please send objections to manager@my.division.com" Honestly, I've been doing this for decades with legal stuff: "Please confirm that my next pickup date for $CHILD is March 1st." often resulted in the other party just remaining silent and, when complaints against her not allowing the child out were made, she re…
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Re: Ask for no, don't ask for yes (2022)
#89This is the famous pattern that we see in building interfaces. "Tell, don't ask".
Re: Ask for no, don't ask for yes (2022)
#90I think this kind of approach, and I've used it in the past, only works in American companies or bosses who are familiar with the American way of business. It can backfire badly if the boss doesn't like it. During a performance review, the boss inevitably labels you as insubordinate and all of the evidence needed was handed to them on a platter. Sometimes asking for permission really is the best way, even in the US.…
This will not work in non-American companies where a boss might actually have a life and not work weekends, or heaven forbids have days/week(s) off.
This would have worked fine in a Scandinavian company where managers are expected to delegate (some/most) technical responsibility. If boss was off, and couldn’t react in time, their eventual reaction would depend entirely on the outcome. If you were successful, they’ll appreciate that you didn’t hold up the decision by asking them.