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I have this job that I usually do however this month I'm kind of swamped and need someone else to do this. Should I directly ask coworkers if they can do it or ask manager to see if he can assign it to whoever is available?

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Need coworker to do some stuff, ask directly or ask manager to assign it

Neither.

Talk to your manager.

  • Remind them of the tasks that you currently have pending to complete and their deadlines.
  • Explain to them the reasons for why you will not be able to complete all of them on time.
  • Ask them to assign priorities (if they have already haven't).

After that, you follow whatever instructions your manager gives you. If the manager wants to hand off any of your tasks to a coworker, that is their decision to make not yours.

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    yes I think asking people to do stuff when Im not the manager is a little weird.
    – Bigbob23
    Jun 29 at 17:21
  • Sometimes it is entirely reasonable to ask a colleague to do something, often there is a stigma attached to it either of laziness or incompetence.
    – JosephDoggie
    Jun 29 at 17:31
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    Important to lay it all out for your manager, they may decide that the thing you would ask someone else to cover is actually the thing they feel most important for you to do yourself.
    – cdkMoose
    Jun 29 at 19:54
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    There are times when you can ask a friend informally to help you with something. But if you have to ask us, that isn't the relationship you have.
    – keshlam
    Jun 29 at 21:13

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