How to have healthy boundaries AND say "Yes"

Burnout is a big challenge many of us are facing, because we have more than ever on our plates since moving to remote work. Most of the advice we hear is to have stronger boundaries and learn how to say "No."

This isn't always helpful because many of us feel afraid of letting the team down, or we're in new leadership roles and we want to show our value-add, and in some situations, saying "No" feels unreasonable.

So, instead, how about we start from YES? When we do this, while holding our boundaries in place, we are forced to become creative and push ourselves to uncover what needs to be true so that we can say "Yes".

This is "Yes, AND."

What additional resources - time, money, clarity, reprioritisation, redefinition of the solution can we explore so that we can deliver, while honouring our needs? This type of expansive thinking is a significantly more empowered place to begin, can often lead to better outcomes for everyone and is exactly what sets strong, creative leaders apart from the rest.

Is there an area of your work life where you can say "Yes, and" instead of just saying "Yes" and continuing to burn out?