Exit
eWISE
BY KATY
HALL
I’d like to know how to stop people from using
the annoying “Please advise.” It’s used as a
passive-aggressive way to drop the ball in the
other person’s court. Much better to come out
and ask for help, or state what your real question is. Please advise :-) — F.H.
Q
In terms of office passive aggression, this is right up
there with “Thanks in advance!” or copying a similarly qualified colleague to answer a question rather
than figuring it out yourself. If someone is regularly
writing you emails that begin with a description of a
catastrophe and end with “Please advise,” there may be a polite way
to train him out of it. If fixing the catastrophe is not your job, you can
tell him what you’d do in a similar situation and connect him with the
A
ILLUSTRATION BY JASON SCHNEIDER
HUFFINGTON
11.11.12
resources he needs.
“Hope that helps!” is an
insincere but effective
way to signal you have no
more assistance to offer.
And yes, it’s best to avoid
commands like “Please
advise” or “Let me know”
when asking a favor. As
you suggested, just ask
the question and hope
you haven’t annoyed the
person beyond the point
of answering it.
Hope that helps!