Whilst on the one hand you don't want to say no to any idea or suggestion for your product, taking on new work at the wrong time can really slow you down.

So, what's the best way to say no? Here's 10 approaches:

• Ignorance is bliss. Turn-off email and put your headphones on. Yep, pretty extreme but sometimes it is the only way.
• Simply, listen. Because sometimes it's enough just to listen to what someone has to say.
• Short, sharp, NO. If it is something you can never see being done, say so.
• Phase it in. An old favourite. Can't do it right now but perhaps in a later version.
• More information required. Many ideas just are not full ideas or opportunities. Ask for more detail on these ones, you owe this to yourself before you even consider it.
• Strategic fit. It could be an amazing idea, but apples are apples. Sometimes it's just the wrong time for a banana.
• Already doing it. The chances are high you are already doing (or have thought of doing) what is being suggested. Nobody really likes to hear this, but you should definitely not be shy if this comes up.
• But that means we can't wash your car. Moot the reality that one big idea at a time is how it works, the new idea may well be important but something else will inevitably have to slip.
• Be bullet proof. Nail your product feature road map to the wall. If people see you are on top of things they may well feel comfortable enough to at least hold back on knee-jerk ideas.
• Have you spoken to Tom about this? Lots of people have pet projects, divert them. Chances are, it may be appropriate for them to talk to someone else before they come to you.

Saying no successfully is an art. In truth, the best product managers do all of the above, all of the time.

The ultimate benchmark is the product. If it happens you are getting features that are consistently controversial the chances are you are saying YES too often.

Would be really interested to hear others thoughts on this?

Update on Friday, August 14, 2009 at 09:17AM by Carl Knibbs

Another related theme on this subject is: Don't encourage an environment of creating solutions to imaginary problems.
Product managers should always be aware that if a business has a problem with sales or marketing, introspection kicks in and eyes turn to the product. In this scenario recognise what is happening and fall back on analytics and customer feedback, these are where you'll get a steer on where the real opportunities and requirements reside.