Pair off with someone you have not worked with before. In this exercise, you will pretend that you work for a small air conditioning company. Occasionally one of your coworkers, Daniel, asks you to visit clients when they have an issue. Because this is not an official part of your job, you do this as a favor to Daniel and feel comfortable turning down his requests if you are unable to help him. When you’re about to leave to go to lunch, you see the following e-mail.

Subject: Issue with Phillips Park Animal Kennel Air Conditioning

Good afternoon,

You mentioned that you are picking up lunch at that burger place in Phillips Park. I just got a call from the Phillips Park Animal Kennel. The air conditioner we just installed went out this morning. Do you think you could go over there before you pick up lunch to smooth things over? A service technician cannot make it out there until three o’clock today, so they’re pretty mad.

Thanks! Dan

You’re already behind on your work, but you also know Daniel needs your help. Take five minutes, and each write out a one-sentence reply to Daniel telling him whether or not you will go to the kennel before lunch. You must pick one of three tones to use in the e-mail: angry, sarcastic, apologetic, sympathetic, enthusiastic, or neutral. Trade your response and guess which tone each of you picked.

Questions 

1. Did you guess correctly? Why or why not? 

2. Have your partner read his or her email to you in his or her own voice, then read the same e-mail in your voice. Did the tone change depending on who read the e-mail aloud? Why or why not? 

3. Rewrite your e-mails to be three sentences long. Is the tone clearer in these e-mails? Why or why not?