The Polite 'No': Mastering Professional Communication

Welcome to Business Fluency - a newsletter designed to enhance your understanding of essential business terms and concepts and provide you with practical strategies to boost your business and career prospects.

In today’s newsletter:

• The Polite 'No': Mastering Professional Communication

• Quote of the day: Walt Disney

• What I’m Watching - NVIDIA Founder Jensen Huan

• Word of the day: Afraid

• Exercises - Saying ‘no’

• Whenever you are ready, here is how I can help you

The Polite 'No': Mastering Professional Communication

Following on from last week's exploration of indirect questions, this week we'll focus on how to respond politely even when the answer is 'no' or you're unsure.

Cultural Differences in Business Communication

Business English places a high value on politeness, which can differ significantly across cultures.

Having travelled extensively, I've observed fascinating variations in customer service. Compare the service levels in Italy with those in the UK or USA, and you'll notice remarkable differences. Even within a single country, service can vary widely – an Apple Store, for instance, often provides a benchmark of exceptional customer interaction, in my experience.

So, how do we make ourselves more polite even when giving negative responses?

The Art of the Polite 'No'

Firstly, you can soften your response with ‘I’m afraid…’. In this context, ‘afraid’ doesn’t imply fear but rather serves as a polite way to introduce unpleasant news or disagreements.

For instance, let’s use one of our indirect questions from last week as an example:

I hope that you agree that this is a much better response than simply ’no’.

However, we can improve it further by following up with a reason or a suggestion.

This response:

1. Answers in a polite way even though the answer is ‘no’

2. Provides an explanation - ‘waiting for the final figures’

3. Offers a timeframe for resolution - ‘end of the day’

Here’s another example from last week’s newsletter:

And a polite answer with a reason. This time we will also add a suggestion:

Notice how in this example it is not even necessary to say ‘no’. ‘I’m afraid not’ is enough.

Examples from my Business Life

In my own businesses, I've always prioritised helpfulness – even if it means recommending a competitor. When running my motorsport business, I would often direct customers to my competitors. For example:

I wanted to be as helpful as possible, even if it meant potentially losing a sale in the process.

I believed that by being helpful, I would build trust with the customer and increase the likelihood of them coming back to me for future purchases.

Additionally, I hoped that some of my competitors would recommend me when they didn’t have a product in stock.

Communicate Business English

The same principle applies in my current business, Communicate Business English.

When requests fall outside my specialisation – such as teaching young children – I readily recommend other qualified teachers.

Many of my students have come through recommendations from other teachers.

Practical Communication Challenge

This week, practice:

• Using "I'm afraid" to soften negative responses

• Providing clear explanations

• Suggesting alternatives

• Focusing on being genuinely helpful

These techniques will pay off in the long term and you will become known as a polite and helpful person.

Quote of the Day: Walt Disney

I have often found that the first step is the hardest when starting a new project, business, or investing.

People often never feel the time is quite right - they will do it when they have more time, more money, or have done some more research. Once you accept that there is never a perfect time then it becomes obvious that the best time is often now.

This is why I love this quote from Walt Disney:

Will you think about this quote next time you are hesitating to do something?

What I’m Watching - NVIDIA Founder Jensen Huang

When does a business become too big?

While I always wanted to run my own business or be self-employed, I never pictured myself running a big business. Indeed, both of my businesses have been small with one or two employees or some contract workers.

This resonated with me this week when I came across this short video of Nvidia founder Jensen Huang confessing that he wouldn’t start the company all over again.

Coincidentally, I watched this before NVIDIA lost $595 billion on Monday. I will examine this in more detail in Friday’s Financial Fluency newsletter.

Word of the day: Afraid

Afraid - adjective - feeling fear or anxiety, frightened

Afraid - adjective (sorry) - used to politely introduce bad news or disagreement.

We can only say ‘I’m afraid’ in this context. We cannot say ‘You’re afraid you can’t help’.

‘I’m afraid not’ and ‘I’m afraid so’

When we want to politely say no we can say “I’m afraid not”.

When we want to say ‘yes’ or agree with something and we are sad about that thing we can say “I’m afraid so”.

Exercises - saying ‘no’

Whenever you are ready, here is how I can help you:

We provide Business English lessons and Cambridge and IELTS preparation courses. You can book an online lesson over Zoom here:

You can book a free 20-minute consultation with Iain over Zoom here:

Why not subscribe to our sister Financial Fluency newsletter for English students interested in learning about the financial markets and investing?

Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for informational and educational purposes only and should not be construed as financial advice. The information contained herein is generic and does not take into account your individual financial circumstances. You should always consult with a qualified financial professional before making any investment or financial decisions.

Additionally, the authors and/or publishers of this newsletter may hold investments in securities or other financial instruments mentioned herein. These are included for illustrative purposes only and should not be taken as a recommendation to buy or sell such securities or financial instruments.