The moment
It's Thursday afternoon in a London office. Li Na has a client report due at five, and the numbers in it don't add up. She goes to Marcus, who knows the data better than anyone, but he's got his own deadline. Listen for how they get from "I'm swamped" to a trade that works for both of them.
The conversation
- Li Na
- Marcus
- Li Na
- Marcus
- Li Na
- Marcus
- Li Na
- Marcus
- Li Na
- Marcus
- Li Na
- Marcus
Words to know
having much more work than you can handle
make sense, or give the right total
offers a trade or a new idea
give a message or information to the right person
nobody owes anyone a favor now
Check yourself
Practice · 3 min
Play each line and repeat it in the gap. Then take Li Na's part with her lines muted. Say "What if I take your calls this afternoon?" with a slight rise at the end, so it sounds like an offer Marcus can accept or refuse, not an order.
- Li NaMarcus, could I borrow you for ten minutes? I'm stuck on the client report.
- MarcusHonestly, I'm swamped. I've got the budget slides due at four.
- Li NaI know, sorry. The totals don't match the sales data, and I can't see why.
- MarcusHave you checked whether the London figures include tax?
- Li NaI didn't think of that. They might, actually.
- MarcusThat's usually the problem. But I can't look properly until after four.
- Li NaWhat if I take your calls this afternoon? Then you can finish sooner.
- MarcusYou'd do that? The Mumbai team calls every half hour.
- Li NaI'll take notes and pass everything on. You look at my numbers at four.
- MarcusDeal. And if it's the tax thing, you'll have it fixed by five.
- Li NaThanks, Marcus. I owe you one.
- MarcusYou're taking the Mumbai calls. I think we're even.
Say it today
Use it once in a real conversation before tomorrow. Out loud counts, even to yourself.