How To Apologize For A Late Response - Fairygodboss

9/7/2020 How to Apologize for a Late Response | Fairygodboss
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RE: GETTING BACK TO YOU
3 Ways Smart People

Apologize When They Forget
an Email
Adobe Stock / Drobot Dean
Haley Baird Riemer 57

in Career
8 2 Comments
If you forget to respond to an

email, you should only feel the
need to apologize if you delayed
an important interaction or
threatened your company's
reputation in some way.
Express your apology by politely
acknowledging the delay and
justifying when necessary.
A simple "Sorry I wasn't able to
get back to you sooner" or "I'm so
sorry for dropping the ball on
this. I hadn't seen your email until
now" in your next email will do
the trick.
https://fairygodboss.com/career-topics/sorry-for-the-late-response#:~:text=If you're apologizing for,to be your whole email. 1/18

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search? MakeReviews
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pro le.
In our hyper-connected technological

world, we can be reached almost
anywhere, at any time of the day,
through our various devices. That makes
it easier for us to be connected, which is
helpful in a lot of ways, personally and
professionally; but, it comes with a
certain pressure to be available all the
time.
We're expected to be reachable,

through one channel or another, which
means there's a narrowed window for
what makes for a timely response to
something. In certain fast-paced
industries, neglecting to respond to an
email for more than an hour is
considered a late response.
C O M PA N I E S W O M E N LOV E
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We've all fallen behind on keeping up

with our inboxes. If anything, our
increased availability has given way to a
volume of correspondence that is much
more challenging to stay on top of, and
doing so can be taxing. So hey, it
happens. Sometimes life gets in the way
of your responsiveness — you had a
hectic day at work, or a chaotic
afternoon at home, or maybe you simply
forgot.

* Late responses can also be affected by

Home Jobsyour mental health; if you're suffering Resources
Reviews Sign In
from a depressive episode or a
particularly tough time, keeping up with
the more trivial things can be extremely
draining, and it's easy to let them get
away from you.
So, for whatever reason, you've lapsed

on an important email chain or
forgotten to respond to an invite out for
coffee. Any response you send now is
de nitely late.
Now what? Here are a couple of

different responses you can try.
Should you apologize?

Maybe. If it's a situation where you
know you dropped the ball on
something big or your lack of
communication negatively affected your
company's reputation or relationship
with a client, an apology is probably in
order. It's important, though, to
consider the factors that you're dealing
with when you feel the need to
apologize for a late response.
Considering women are conditioned to

be accommodating and penitent, we
often ask for forgiveness and apologize
too much. We might feel obligated to be
available at all times, even when we are
incapable of doing so for normal, human
reasons.
So, before you send a reply with an

apology for the delay, ask yourself if it's
necessary to say sorry. Maybe you don't
need to address the delay at all. If you
feel like you do, consider substituting a
"Thank you for your patience," where
you would normally apologize for your

* own delay. This small change can

Home Jobstransform your relationship
Reviews with your Resources Sign In
inbox, your timeliness, and your sense of
humanity in an output-driven work
culture that can feel consuming.
How do you say sorry for the late

reply?
If you've determined the situation does
warrant an apology, there are several
things you should keep in mind. You
don't want to over-apologize and make
the situation (even more)
uncomfortable. Keep your apology
short and to the point, and get on with
business as usual.
1. Acknowledge the delay.

If you're apologizing for the late
response, make sure you lead by
acknowledging your response is late. A
simple, "Apologies for the delayed
response–" or, "Sorry for not getting
back to you sooner–" does the trick.
Keep the apology to one sentence in
most cases. It doesn't need to be your
whole email.
2. Be polite.
If you've left an email for long enough,
you might have gotten a follow-up email
to check in on your response, which
brings the issue back to your attention
and reminds you that you forgot to
respond. This can be frustrating, as you
might feel guilty or even annoyed.
Maybe your delay has caused actual
repercussions, and your coworker who
needed your input or the friend that
texted you an essay that you left on read
is upset about your unresponsiveness.

* It sounds like a no-brainer, but make

Home Jobssure your response is polite. You don't Resources
Reviews Sign In
have to be overly accommodating in a
way that feels disingenuous, but address
the delay civilly and own up to your
mistake.
3. Don't feel the need to justify too

much.
Don't go overboard with the apology.
Remember, we can't be expected to be
on all the time when it comes to keeping
up with texts and emails, especially if
they are not particularly urgent or
happen during business hours about
things that are lower-priority. Whatever
the situation, resist the urge to
elaborate on why you are responding
late.
Sure, it's ne to include the fact that you

had a particularly crazy week to give
context to your response, but you don't
need it. It can be uncomfortable when
you're too apologetic, or overly
descriptive of the factors that made this
response late. We've all been there. It's
not the end of the world. Don't make
your apology and its justi cation the
focus of the entire message.
Examples
The way you apologize will vary
depending on who you're talking to and
what the nature of the conversation is.
The way you respond to a professional
email you have neglected will be very
different than how you reach out to a
friend you've forgotten to text back for
a few days.
To a colleague or professional
contact:
* If the subject of the email is not urgent

Home Jobsor high-priority, itReviews
may not warrant a full
Resources Sign In
apology. Try this:
Hi there,
Sorry for the delay in getting back to you.
I'll have those les sent over to you as soon
as possible. Let me know if you need
anything else from me.
Best,
Your Name
Or:
Hi,
Sorry I wasn't able to get back to you
sooner. I'd love to meet for coffee sometime
next week. I have availability on Monday
and Wednesday around lunchtime. Do
either of those options work for you?
Thanks!
Your Name
The details of the email will change, of

course, depending on your
circumstance, but keep the frame of
offering a short apology, if you feel it's
necessary, and continuing on to address
the subject of the email, stays the same.
To a boss:
If you lapse on an email from your boss,
or an urgent work email from a client or
coworker, the stakes are higher.
Particularly if the issue was time
sensitive and during business hours, the
repercussions of your mistake might be
more serious, and some justi cation of
your delayed response is a good idea.
Still, keep the apology relatively short,
keep it truthful, and offer only as much
* justi cation as needed. Then, do

Home Jobswhatever you canReviews
to correct your Resources Sign In
mistake.
Hi,
I'm so sorry for dropping the ball on this. I
hadn't seen your email until now. I will
have the project completed and sent over
to you in the next half hour. Please let me
know if there's anything else I can do.
Best,
Your Name
Or:
Hi,
My apologies for the delayed response, I
was out of the of ce yesterday. I can
absolutely make the conference call at 3pm
today. Talk to you soon.
Thanks!
Your Name
Again, details will change, and read the

situation to determine the best way to
respond and how much to apologize.
The most important aspect of your
response is addressing the email itself
and the issue it concerns.
To a friend:
If you're talking to a friend, your apology
will probably be less formal. Your
friends understand you and your life
more than most, so your response will
be more candid.
Hi! Sorry for just now getting back to you.

Having a (particularly) insane week at
work. Yes to dinner on Thursday! Got a
place in mind?

* You know how you can talk to your

Home Jobsfriends, and depending
Reviews on the friend, Resources Sign In
this may take a different shape. If you
know you might have hurt their feelings
by neglecting their message until now,
you can make space for acknowledging
that, too.
Tips for avoiding late replies.

There are many different factors that
might inhibit a timely response. We all
have ways of making sure we stay on top
of things, and building productive
correspondence habits will help you
avoid late replies altogether.
Turn on email noti cations.

This is an easy one, but it can make a
world of difference. If you're concerned
about responding to emails on time,
make sure you have downloaded
whatever email app you use on your
phone and turned on push noti cations.
This way, you'll see new messages as
soon as you open your phone, and
unless you clear the noti cation, it will
remain in your noti cations center as a
visual reminder.
Mark messages as unread if you

can't respond right away.
Similarly, having unread messages can
be a helpful visual way to keep the
messages you haven't responded to on
your radar so you don't forget about
them. If you open an email, and you
know you can't respond right away,
mark the email as unread so it stands
out in your inbox.
Star and categorize messages

according to importance.
* Make use of the different ways your

Home Jobsemail carrier lets Reviews
you star, ag, and Resources Sign In
categorize messages. They can be a
huge help when it comes to organizing
your inbox and setting yourself up for
success in staying on top of things. You
can create different ags for different
areas of your life — work, home, a
particular friend group, a speci c
project you're working on — and
categorize emails as you get them. This
way, you can make sure you don't miss
something urgent pertaining to a topic
you know is time-sensitive or high-
priority.
Set reminders for yourself.

Avoiding a late reply can be as simple as
setting reminders for yourself on your
phone to respond. What this looks like is
up to you. Maybe you designate two or
three windows of time a day reserved
for checking your inbox and catching up
on emails to ensure you're up-to-date,
or maybe you receive an email and can't
respond right away, so you set a
reminder for during your next break to
get back to it.
Everyone knows what it's like to realize

you've forgotten to respond to a
message, panic about it momentarily,
and try to gure out how to apologize
for responding late. Just remember, you
don't necessarily owe the world your
constant availability. Try to take a little
pressure off of yourself when it comes
to keeping up with your inbox. Yes, try
to stay on top of things, for your own
sanity and for the good of your
professional and personal relationships;

* but if you do miss something, take it in

Home Jobsstride, own up to your mistake, and
Reviews Resources Sign In
move forward.
8 2 Comments
2 Comments
MST '-' MAN 11
10/26/19 at 12:36AM GMT+2
♥.♥
Reply
Taylor Davidson 57 Tech sales in

NYC
01/17/20 at 2:36PM GMT+2
"thanks for your patience" is a great

substitute and really changes the tone of
the email. Love this!
Reply
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What would you do in this situation?
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9/7/2020 How to Apologize for a Late Response | Fairygodboss

RE: GETTING BACK TO YOU

3 Ways Smart People

Adobe Stock / Drobot Dean

Haley Baird Riemer 57

If you forget to respond to an

https://fairygodboss.com/career-topics/sorry-for-the-late-response#:~:text=If you're apologizing for,to be your whole email. 1/18

* Ready to take control of your job

In our hyper-connected technological

We're expected to be reachable,

Baxter International is hiring

We've all fallen behind on keeping up

https://fairygodboss.com/career-topics/sorry-for-the-late-response#:~:text=If you're apologizing for,to be your whole email. 2/18

* Late responses can also be affected by

So, for whatever reason, you've lapsed

Now what? Here are a couple of

Should you apologize?

Considering women are conditioned to

So, before you send a reply with an

https://fairygodboss.com/career-topics/sorry-for-the-late-response#:~:text=If you're apologizing for,to be your whole email. 3/18

* own delay. This small change can

How do you say sorry for the late

1. Acknowledge the delay.

https://fairygodboss.com/career-topics/sorry-for-the-late-response#:~:text=If you're apologizing for,to be your whole email. 4/18

* It sounds like a no-brainer, but make

3. Don't feel the need to justify too

Sure, it's ne to include the fact that you

* If the subject of the email is not urgent

The details of the email will change, of

* justi cation as needed. Then, do

Again, details will change, and read the

Hi! Sorry for just now getting back to you.

https://fairygodboss.com/career-topics/sorry-for-the-late-response#:~:text=If you're apologizing for,to be your whole email. 7/18

* You know how you can talk to your

Tips for avoiding late replies.

Turn on email noti cations.

Mark messages as unread if you

Star and categorize messages

* Make use of the different ways your

Set reminders for yourself.

Everyone knows what it's like to realize

https://fairygodboss.com/career-topics/sorry-for-the-late-response#:~:text=If you're apologizing for,to be your whole email. 9/18

* but if you do miss something, take it in

Taylor Davidson 57 Tech sales in

"thanks for your patience" is a great

Join the conversation...

Looking for a new job?

The Fairygodboss Feed

Hi everyone. Looking for some advice… I’m

Alexis Gladstone 107 Leadership &

Hi. I'll try and answer your questions

1. How you get paid. First, you will

Do you ever feel like those

https://fairygodboss.com/career-topics/sorry-for-the-late-response#:~:text=If you're apologizing for,to be your whole email. 11/18

* I have found in every company that I have

Maryana Ivlev 30 Supply Chain

Hi, Stephanie, I see this a lot in the

Una Dabiero 4.44k Editorial Associate at

8 Cringeworthy Phrases That Are

Eraina Ferguson 564 Founder of

Great article! I’ve de nitely made at

Women Who Wear This to Work are