About this quote

Sometimes you need to establish a hard boundary before anyone even thinks about crossing it. It saves everyone a lot of time. When you make your terms and your power absolutely clear, you eliminate the need for passive-aggressive games. Are you holding back your warnings because you want to seem nice? Stop softening your stance; let people know exactly what they are dealing with so they can choose their steps wisely.

When to use it

• When a toxic colleague tries to dump their weekend work on you, you send a crisp, one-line refusal that leaves no room for negotiation.
• You post a mock-threatening sticky note on your expensive French press after finding it unwashed in the sink for the third time this week.
• Before starting a group project, you tell your slacker partners that you will remove their names from the final slide if they miss the first deadline.
• When a freeloading friend asks to borrow cash again, you look them in the eye and state your strict repayment policy before handing over a dime.