• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

MacKenzie Scott, Melinda French Gates, and Lauren Sánchez Bezos are rewriting the rules of billionaire giving—one quietly, one strategically, one very publicly

2

After donating $48 billion to the Gates Foundation, Warren Buffett is quietly ending one of the biggest philanthropic relationships in history

3

Current price of silver as of Tuesday, July 14, 2026

1

MacKenzie Scott, Melinda French Gates, and Lauren Sánchez Bezos are rewriting the rules of billionaire giving—one quietly, one strategically, one very publicly

2

After donating $48 billion to the Gates Foundation, Warren Buffett is quietly ending one of the biggest philanthropic relationships in history

3

Current price of silver as of Tuesday, July 14, 2026
CommentaryMost Powerful Women

Why You Must Learn to Let Go and Ask for Help at Work

By
Kathy Bloomgarden
Kathy Bloomgarden
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Kathy Bloomgarden
Kathy Bloomgarden
Down Arrow Button Icon
November 28, 2016, 10:00 PM ET
Messy desk with stacks of paperwork and binders, Cern, Geneva, Switzerland
Rune Johansen—Getty Images
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

The MPW Insiders Network is an online community where the biggest names in business and beyond answer timely career and leadership questions. Today’s answer for: “How do you manage a heavy workload?” is written by Kathy Bloomgarden, CEO of Ruder Finn.

At one point or another, everyone has experienced the overwhelming paralysis that comes when trying to manage a heavy workload—and no one more so than a CEO. With offices and clients all over the world, I am constantly juggling meetings and requests from different corners of the business—and at all hours. At the crack of dawn, both Asia and Europe are waiting for answers, and after a long day in New York, California is still at it. So, what can one do when there are simply not enough hours in the day to get it all done?

Check your work style
Ask yourself if it’s you. Be sure you are sharpening your management skills and managing yourself as much as you do others. Don’t hoard the work and think that only you can complete the tasks at hand. Especially as women in the workplace, we sometimes feel inclined to do everything ourselves. We’ve been trained to think that asking for help is a sign of weakness. But I’ve learned that part of being a good leader is letting go and trusting in the capabilities of my team. Managing a tough workload is not an individual marathon—it’s a team sport. The more you think and act as a team, the more manageable your workload will become.

See also: 4 Ways to Manage a Heavy Workload and Still Stay Sane

Recognize what you do best and what you enjoy most
Some projects take minutes to review, plan, and implement, while others seem to reside on that looming list forever. Tackle the efforts that you do best and share and assign the more daunting tasks with other members of the team. For example, while I love to write, I need quiet and a few hours to research and collect my thoughts, so writing op-eds, press releases, and briefings might linger on my to-do list. It took some time for me to realize that I need to collaborate with my team to make certain that we keep a quick pace, and exchange drafts back and forth.

Be effective, not just efficient
Don’t just ask how to efficiently manage a heavy workload, but think about how to do it effectively. If you focus on managing it, you’ll just plod along, maybe only improving the speed of completion a bit faster. But if you focus on doing the right things at the right time with the right amount of effort, you will create the most impact.

Former General Electric (GE) CEO Jack Welch was right when he said, “You can’t grow long term if you can’t eat short term. Anybody can manage short. Anybody can manage long. Balancing those two things is what management is.” This captures the dynamic that is essential to managing a heavy workload: Assess, prioritize, empower the team, and execute on the immediate efforts that create impact.

About the Author
By Kathy Bloomgarden
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Latest in Commentary

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Commentary

r
CommentaryFDA
Trust in the FDA is collapsing. It’s time to get really transparent about our food and our drugs
By Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Megan Ranney, Sten Vermund, Patricia Greenstein and Steven TianJuly 14, 2026
10 hours ago
mm
Commentaryregulation
Exclusive: Delaware proposes testing the AIC, a new legal entity for agents in a regulatory sandbox
By John Nay and Charuni Patibanda-SanchezJuly 14, 2026
14 hours ago
jobs
CommentaryLabor
Black women’s unemployment rate fell. That’s not the good news you think it is
By Katica RoyJuly 14, 2026
18 hours ago
b
CommentaryWorld Cup
Columbia Business School professors: What the Balogun red card can teach us about AI and judgment
By Oded Netzer, Christopher Frank and Paul MagnoneJuly 13, 2026
2 days ago
usa
Commentary250 Years of Innovation
For 250 years, work defined American identity. That era Is ending
By Keith Ferrazzi and Wendy SmithJuly 11, 2026
4 days ago
m
Commentarymedicine
America’s bone health is quietly headed for a $19 billion crisis
By Matthew T. DrakeJuly 9, 2026
6 days ago

Most Popular

MacKenzie Scott, Melinda French Gates, and Lauren Sánchez Bezos are rewriting the rules of billionaire giving—one quietly, one strategically, one very publicly
Newsletters
MacKenzie Scott, Melinda French Gates, and Lauren Sánchez Bezos are rewriting the rules of billionaire giving—one quietly, one strategically, one very publicly
By Sydney LakeJuly 14, 2026
12 hours ago
After donating $48 billion to the Gates Foundation, Warren Buffett is quietly ending one of the biggest philanthropic relationships in history
North America
After donating $48 billion to the Gates Foundation, Warren Buffett is quietly ending one of the biggest philanthropic relationships in history
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezJuly 14, 2026
11 hours ago
Current price of silver as of Tuesday, July 14, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of silver as of Tuesday, July 14, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerJuly 14, 2026
19 hours ago
Current price of gold as of July 14, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of gold as of July 14, 2026
By Danny BakstJuly 14, 2026
16 hours ago
United States' $39 trillion national debt will mean fewer jobs at lower wages for Gen Z, according to think tank
Economy
United States' $39 trillion national debt will mean fewer jobs at lower wages for Gen Z, according to think tank
By Eleanor PringleJuly 14, 2026
18 hours ago
'He found their weakness. It might have been sex. It might be power': Warren Buffett stunned by Epstein pull as he snubs Gates Foundation
Banking
'He found their weakness. It might have been sex. It might be power': Warren Buffett stunned by Epstein pull as he snubs Gates Foundation
By Josh Funk and The Associated PressJuly 14, 2026
14 hours ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.