The colleagues at Collegewise who know me best know never to send me an email like this.
Kevin, could you and I schedule an hour of time to chat in the next few days? I’d really appreciate it. Thanks.
All that does is conjure up images in my mind of potential agendas, none of which are positive.
Somebody is leaving Collegewise.
Somebody really let down a customer who’s now upset.
Somebody has contracted the Bubonic plague, etc.
I know this is entirely my fault and that it doesn’t necessarily need to be this way (after all, I could just as easily think, This is probably going to be something great!) And in fact, those vague requests almost never lead to conversations that were as bad as I imagined they could be. But I always appreciate when someone gives me a 1-2 sentence preview of what this conversation will be about, so my mind doesn’t spin from now until the conversation. And I can even start thinking productively about how to make the meeting worth our time.
Given (1) how often students, parents, counselors, and teachers might be emailing each other, and (2) how many of those emails involve a request for a conversation or an actual meeting, it’s worth considering how the request itself colors the recipient’s perception of the impending meeting.
Do you want the meeting to be one that they actively dread? One that they worry could be bad but aren’t yet sure of? One that they’re tentatively encouraged by? Or one that they can actively look forward to and even begin considering how to best help you with your request?
For example, everything about this request leaves the recipient certain that this will not be a pleasant meeting:
We were extremely disappointed to learn that our son will not be placed in AP US History next year. He is a top student and this is completely unacceptable. Please contact us at your earliest convenience so we can address this with you.
And this sounds like a meeting that could go either way:
Are you available to meet this week about our son’s course schedule? We have some concerns we’d like to discuss.
This meeting could be positive:
Our son just informed us that he will not be placed in AP US History next year. We were hoping we could meet with you to get your feedback and to discuss his options, as we don’t want to make any crucial mistakes.
And this meeting sounds like an entirely positive one:
Our son just informed us that he will not be placed in AP US History next year, which certainly didn’t come as a surprise as we know that history was not his strongest subject last semester. But we want to make sure that we aren’t overlooking any available options that might help rectify this. And if there aren’t, we’d love your advice about the best course schedule for him given his college goals.
The way you ask for a meeting affects the likelihood that the meeting itself will be productive.
Bonus tip: Asking for “advice” is almost always a good way to open up meeting possibilities.
One last bonus tip: This goes best when the student, not the parent, sends the email.