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Your laptop boots, your tea is still steaming, and a chair rolls closer—suddenly you’re knee-deep in someone else’s midnight saga. We’ve all lived that moment, and today we break down how to stay kind without surrendering your morning to the office oversharer. From quick, respectful exit lines to simple focus cues that anyone can use, we share the tools that protect your attention and your sanity.

We also open the floor to the realities of scope creep. Listeners reveal being handed branch keys as new starters, being treated as someone’s assistant without consent, and being asked to clean toilets or front work costs on a personal credit card. These stories surface a pattern: when teams skip clear roles and boundaries, the most obliging person gets stretched thin. We talk through practical ways to say no, push work back to the right owner, and escalate safely when requests cross the line. No drama, no guilt—just clean, professional boundaries.

Then comes a painfully familiar tale: the “Quick Catch Up” meeting with no agenda that devolves into reading emails line by line and ends with, “We’ll follow up by email.” We offer a simple decision tree to fix it—write it if it’s information, invite fewer people if it’s a decision, and send a pre-read for brainstorming. Along the way we keep it honest and human: headphones are a boundary, nods can be consent, and being kind does not mean being available 24/7. You’re not rude for prioritising deep work; you’re responsible.

If you enjoyed this conversation, follow the show, share it with a colleague who needs better mornings, and leave a review with your best boundary line. Got a story we should hear—funny, frustrating, or painfully real? Send it in and it might be featured next.

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