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Ask Flex / Overwhelmed, doing the job of three

Ask Flex

Are you doing too much at work?

Probably. Compare the two lists.

The list

"Answer the phones. Keep the calendar. File the reports."

"All of that. Plus the invoices, the new hires, the supply orders, and everything the last person did before they left."

The pay

"What you agreed to."

"Still what you agreed to."

An example. Your job, your call.

Flex's short answer

If the list of what you really do is a lot longer than the job you were hired for, then you probably are. Write the two lists side by side, so you and your boss can see the difference.

✱ Flex's tips

Put both lists side by side.

1

Find your job description

Or write down what you were told on day one.

2

List what you do now

One real week, start to finish.

3

Mark what was added

And about when.

4

Bring the gap to your boss

"These were added. Which ones should stay with me?"

Try this in your own Claude or ChatGPT

Here's the job I was hired for: [paste or describe]. Here's what I really do in a week: [list, with rough hours for each]. Show me the gap between the two, using my hours, and write a short note to my boss asking which of the added tasks should stay with me.

Before you paste work stuff into any AI, check what your company allows.
Free tool

The Three Piles

Type everything on your plate, tap each one into a pile, and walk out with a list your boss can read.

Sort my plate
Flex the robot at his desk under a teal umbrella while sticky notes rain down, one finished page in the dry spot in front of him, and little Clawd riding a sticky note down like a parachute
Inside the Lab

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A free group where you learn to use Claude for the repeat parts of your job: email, reports, forms. Start with a 15-minute chat that maps what Claude can do in your job.

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✱ What people ask
What are the signs you are indispensable at work?

Everything routes through you, and nobody else knows how you do it. Flex has a page on it.

What if I'm doing the work of 3 people?

Put all three jobs on paper and ask which comes first. Flex has a page on it.

I'm overloaded at work. What do I do?

Show the list and ask what should come off. Flex has a page on it.

✱ More from this pile: Overwhelmed, doing the job of three
What do you do when you're over­whelmed at work?How do you manage a heavy workload?Doing the work of 3 people?Over­whelmed at work and want to quit?Does everyone feel over­whelmed at work?What are the signs you are indispensable at work?How do you get through an extremely busy time at work?Over­whelmed at a new job?So over­whelmed at work you want to cry?How can you be productive at work? The Three Piles
From Nikki's blogFlex tells you how. Nikki tells you what it felt like. Read it on Clawd and Me. Read it →

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