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Requests
Making requests
You will often need to ask other people to do something in your professional life. How you ask people to do this is very important. The language you use depends on the context and your relationship to the other person.
Look at the following request that has been written differently to show four different contexts.
| Context | Request |
|---|---|
| Very polite | Would it be possible to raise this issue with Rochelle next week? |
| Polite | Could you raise this issue with Rochelle next week? |
| Direct | Can you please raise this issue with Rochelle next week? |
| Direct order | Please raise this issue with Rochelle next week. |
Declining requests
Sometimes, you may need to decline a request. You also need to do this politely. One way is to offer a reason. It is also helpful to suggest an alternative.
For example:
| Request | Response |
| Would it be possible to meet at 4pm today to discuss this further? | I’m afraid I’m not available at 4pm today. Can we catch up at 9:30am tomorrow morning? |
| If you could forward the documents before you go home this evening, that would be great. | Unfortunately, I am out of the office all day. Can I forward the documents first thing tomorrow morning? |
| Could you raise this issue with Rochelle when you meet her next week? | I’m sorry, I can’t. I’ll be out of the office all of next week. I’m back on the following Monday, so I could arrange to meet her then. |
How polite are you?
Sometimes it is a good idea to ask a colleague to read your email before it is sent to the recipient. You can also find websites that check your writing for levels of politeness.