The Don't-Be-a-Schmuck Guide to Rescheduling Yes, it happens to everyone, but there's a right way and a wrong way to go about it.

Hi. Sorry. I know you came all this way, but I'm gonna have to reschedule this reading experience. You didn't confirm, so I thought it wasn't going to work for you. So, anyway, I'll get in touch about another time, OK? Sorry, it's just been really crazy the past few days. I've been sick, and I'm just, you know: "Aaah!"

Let's analyze why that's such a bad way to reschedule. 1. It happened too late. 2. It placed blame on the other party. 3. The rescheduling is left open-ended. 4. "It's just been really crazy" is not a valid reason to postpone anything in business. 5. "I've been sick" is unnecessarily burdensome information. And 6. "Aaah!"? Aaah! No professional action is more revealing than the manner in which a person reschedules a meeting. It indicates how important the person thinks they are, how important they think the other person is and how efficient, considerate and dependable they are in business. The rescheduling request is both minefield and opportunity. But mainly: opportunity.

The mechanics of rescheduling