You decide to ask your boss if you can take Friday off. Which request do you think he or she is going to react to more positively? ‘Can I take Friday off, Boss?’ Or this one: ‘Boss, can YOU do without me Friday?’ In the first case, Boss had to translate your ‘Can I take Friday off’ into ‘Can I do without this employee Friday?’ That’s an extra thought process. (And you know how some bosses hate to think!)
