How to Say "No" Without Feeling Bad
Go Natural English Podcast | Listening & Speaking Lessons
Release Date: 10/31/2025
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How to Say "No" Without Feeling Bad
Go Natural English Podcast | Listening & Speaking Lessons
🗣 Business English for Negotiations — How to Say “No” Without Sounding Rude Learn how to say “no” politely and confidently in English! In this Business English lesson, you’ll discover 5 professional ways to say “no” without offending anyone — perfect for meetings, negotiations, and workplace conversations. You’ll learn my 5 C’s Framework for polite refusals — practical phrases, real examples, tone tips, and short dialogues to sound confident in business English conversations. 🎯 What You’ll Learn ✅ How to say “no” politely and professionally in English ✅...
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info_outline🗣 Business English for Negotiations — How to Say “No” Without Sounding Rude
Learn how to say “no” politely and confidently in English! In this Business English lesson, you’ll discover 5 professional ways to say “no” without offending anyone — perfect for meetings, negotiations, and workplace conversations.
You’ll learn my 5 C’s Framework for polite refusals — practical phrases, real examples, tone tips, and short dialogues to sound confident in business English conversations.
🎯 What You’ll Learn
✅ How to say “no” politely and professionally in English
✅ 5C’s method: Check, Conditional Yes, Choice, Care, and Close
âś… Real negotiation dialogues for business situations
âś… Pronunciation and intonation to sound natural
✅ Why “no” earns respect — not rejection
đź’¬ Useful Phrases
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“Let me check and get back to you by Friday.”
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“We can do that if we extend the deadline.”
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“That may not work, but what if we try this approach?”
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“I completely understand, but unfortunately that’s beyond our budget.”
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“I appreciate the offer, but we’ll have to decline at this time.”
⏰ Timestamps
00:00 – Why saying “no” is so hard
00:15 – Recovering from being a “yes” person
00:35 – Why saying no earns respect
01:13 – When to use the 5 C’s method
01:28 – Let’s get started
01:36 – Why this is an essential skill
02:03 – Introducing the 5 C’s Framework
02:28 – Fluent Communication 5.0 invitation
03:00 – Cultural differences: what “no” means around the world
03:32 – Direct vs. indirect communication (US, Japan, Brazil)
04:46 – How to be politely direct
05:02 – C1: Check (Delay Technique)
05:40 – Example: responding to your boss
05:57 – Why “Check” buys you time
06:09 – C2: Conditional Yes
06:28 – Example: realistic negotiation condition
06:50 – C3: Choice (Offer an alternative)
07:03 – Example: different timeline
07:20 – C4: Care (Show empathy)
07:52 – Example: understanding the other person’s stress
08:41 – C5: Close Firmly (Polite but clear “No”)
09:13 – Use softeners like “just” or “at this time”
09:34 – Pronunciation: rising vs. falling tone
09:54 – Practice tone examples
10:12 – Role Play 1: Client asks for a discount
10:44 – Role Play 2: Boss asks for extra work
11:10 – Quiz & Recap of the 5 C’s
12:40 – Why clear “no” = respect and confidence
13:00 – Next lesson preview: How to say “Yes” effectively
13:52 – Subscribe & join Fluent Communication 5.0 waitlist
14:08 – Closing
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Episode keywords: business english, how to say no politely, polite english phrases, english for professionals, english at work, negotiation english, english communication skills, business english conversation, how to refuse politely, english fluency training, english conversation practice, professional english speaking, fluent communication, gonaturalenglish, english lessons for advanced learners