Excuses for Canceling Plans at the Last Minute, Ranked
There is no better adrenaline rush than when you cancel your plans at the last minute. What once seemed like a weight on your shoulders, squeezing you every hour, has disappeared. Suddenly your time is yours again. We understoodthat you were making plans with someone, andsuddenly something surfaced . Or maybe you are tired or cold and going outside is too much effort.
Here at Lifehacker headquarters, we would never have canceled plans – or come up with completely fictitious reasons for abandoning them – if it were not deemed necessary. If you’ve ever struggled to find the right excuse, below is a list of our recommendations, ranked in order of difficulty (and, well, who answered me first).
Let’s start with the least difficult one:
8. Your “busy” schedule is to blame for everything. “I think my main goal is to convince them that it will be better if we just talk another time. “We can do something fun next week when things are less crazy,” suggested Joel, our senior video producer, as an example.
7. Say that you just feel “out of yourself.” “I’m definitely inclined to use some sort of ‘Wow, I’ve been feeling jaded the last couple of days and I think I have something going on,’ Megan, our editor for Offspring, told me. “I have to stay at home and go to bed early to fend it off, I know.”
6. Or, to be more specific, say that you have stomach problems. “Nobody wants to ask for further action, and nobody doubts me,” said Virginia, our editor-in-chief. “How long does the stomach hurt? It could be 10 minutes, it could be 10 years, nobody knows, ”said Lisa, author of Two Cents, who also supports this tactic.
5. Blame the hangover. My general recommendation is: “Sorry, I physically can’t go outside … I had such a long night yesterday.” Most people understand and sympathize with you when you say that you don’t even want to be in the presence of alcohol. …
4. Say it is the children’s fault. “I mean, they always need to take a nap, or they have a school project, or something like that,” said Beth, our editor at Vitals, over Slack. Nick, one of our in-house writers and new father, uses the same excuse. “I’m sorry, I have to take care of the baby tonight.” It works even if it’s a lie, because it’s usually true! “
3. Your mental health is to blame for everything. “I have very serious anxiety problems and it often prevents me from doing things. But maybe FOREVER, I said I was having a bad worry day when I really don’t, “an anonymous Slack source told me. “It allows me to abandon plans, and at the same time makes people feel bad about me, lmao.”
2. Keep it a secret. “Usually I just speak vaguely, but about: ‘Hey, sorry, something urgent happened at the last minute, can we try to reschedule? “Said Abu, our video producer. The only concern is that they might go further; if you find yourself in such a situation, just be short and say that you will explain later (and prepare an excuse when you do).
1. Or just be honest that you don’t want to hang out . Maybe you are not interested in being friends. ( Here’s how to ditch a friend !) Or maybe you just don’t have the time – that’s okay too. If you haven’t announced yourself a few weeks in advance, or made it absolutely clear that you won’t unsubscribe, don’t feel obligated to follow through, especially when you don’t feel like it. You have the right to use your time as you see fit. “I can get fired any day Cheryl, I don’t have time to celebrate your damn birthday,” Abu suggested rather coldly via Slack. “Ha ha ha ha.”
Are you kidding Abu?