012 How to sound less direct and more diplomatic
How to sound less direct and more diplomatic
Introduction
Hi, everyone and welcome back to the Art of Business English. In today’s episode I wanted to take a look at direct vs diplomatic language. One of the biggest problems we can face when we are using our business English is sounding too direct, and in turn rude. It is true that sometimes we say things and we think they are OK, but to a native speaker of English it sounds wrong and even aggressive.
We don’t want to offend anyone, especially by accident. The second problem is language and cultural differences. I have found that Spanish is a more direct language and that is OK when we are speaking Spanish. The problem arises when we start speaking English and simply translate, this can then sound too direct in English.
The difference between direct and diplomatic language
Direct language is simple and straight tot the point. There are usually no problems with understanding the message. However, it can rude and even aggressive. Some cultures appreciate direct language over others. Getting straight to the point with clarity is appreciated.
Diplomatic language is softer and less direct. We try and show the other person that we are listening to them and understand their opinion.
Tips for sounding more diplomatic
Show that you are listening
There are several things we can do to sound more diplomatic and less direct. The first one is to show that you are listening and understand the other persons point of view
Use positive words
The second thing we can do is use the negative form of positive words instead of using negative words.
Use softeners
Thirdly, we can use some qualifiers to soften the message of negative sentences. Qualifiers are used to modify other words to increase or decrease the quality.
Negative question forms
We can ask questions in the negative form to sound more polite. If we do this instead of using a direct statement in the affirmative, we are in fact making the statement more suggestive and less direct.
Finally, we need to consider the role of conditionals when using diplomatic language. Conditionals always sound less direct. We should avoid using the imperative and try and soften our statements using conditionals such as could, would and should/ought to. We can also use the past continuous/progressive form to make our sentences more polite. This combined with conditionals sounds much better.
Final thoughts
That covers direct vs diplomatic language. Remember, many languages have a direct way of speaking and when this is translated into English it can sound rude or aggressive. If we want to be good negotiators and good hosts when we have international guests coming to our company, then we need to understand how to sound diplomatic and polite.
If you say something that sounds too direct, then don’t be afraid of saying sorry and correcting yourself. Most native English speakers will understand that you didn’t mean to sound rude, it just came out that way.