WHAT YOU
SHOULD KNOW“COULD”, “SHOULD”, “WOULD”
Use modal verbs to make your re-
quests, questions and suggestions
sound more polite:
● Could we finish at 10.30 today?
● Should we ask Tom to the meeting?
● I would suggest we look at it first.
If you feel you need to make your re-
quests even more polite, use Would
you mind...?:
● Would you mind starting at 8.30 today?
DON’T INTERRUPT!
The rule about interrupting is simple:
don’t. It’s rude. Wait until someone has
finished speaking before you start to
speak. However, if someone is talking
too much, especially about something
that is not relevant to the meeting, use
sorry to focus the discussion again:
● Sorry, could we get back on track?
If you really have to interrupt someone,
do so politely by using sorry and just:
● Sorry, Mark. Could we just hear Meg’s
views first?
FALSE FRIEND
The German word Protokoll is trans-
lated as minutes:
● Who’s taking the minutes this week?
Don’t use protocol, as this refers to a set
of rules about the correct way to act in
formal situations. The German is also
Protokoll (im Sinne diplomatischer Etikette):
● What’s the protocol for meeting the
archbishop?
BE POLITE
In some cultures, direct disagreement
is impolite. You can “soften” your disa-
greement by using would. Say I
wouldn’t agree, not “I disagree”. You
can also signal that disagreement is
coming by starting with sorry:
● Sorry, but I’m not sure about that.