Whoops! I'm sorry. Sulphur Siren. I couldn't resist saying, no, and then I had a thing to do (really!). I think the trick is to think hard about what you get, what the requester gets, and what larger groups get (like whether your work might benefit your own intellectual community). I turn down self-serving requests easily, and I have a natural aversion to flattery that serves me well. It’s guilt, in its various forms that nails me. Dagnabit! But the one thing I know for sure, even when I am unable to follow through… is that the biggest mistake in the book is to give your reasons. Never let someone who is trying to persuade you of something help you manage your priorities.
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Posted by kodachrome to academicsecret at 8/22/2006 06:10:20 PM
