## Why Should Product Owners Avoid Adding Items Just to Avoid Saying No? Adding items to avoid conflict creates false expectations, undermines trust when those items are not delivered, and weakens the Product Owner’s authority, making them seem like an order taker rather than a decision-maker. >[!metaphor] >Adding every request to the backlog just to keep people happy is like accepting every meeting invite and filling your calendar with events you’ll never attend. It feels polite in the moment, but when you inevitably ghost half of them, people stop believing your yes means anything. </br> >A Product Owner who clutters the backlog this way trades short-term harmony for long-term mistrust. ## Works Consulted 1. [000267 Battling the Bloated Product Backlog](https://www.scrum.org/resources/blog/battling-bloated-product-backlog) | Scrum.org | Accessed 25 Jul. 2025. ## Connections follows:: [[3.2 A Bloated Product Backlog Erodes Trust]] topics:: [[Product Backlog]], [[Trust]], [[Saying No]], [[Product Owner]], [[Authority]] ![[Footer]]