Being direct and being courteous can coexist. Here’s how to trim messages without sounding abrupt.

## Swap filler for clear, polite openers

- Instead of “Hope you’re well, quick question” → “Quick question on X:”
- Instead of “Sorry to bother” → “Flagging for you because you own X.”
- Instead of “Just circling back” → “Following up on from .”

## Use one ask per message

- Lead with the ask: “Can you approve PR #123 by 2 PM PT?”
- If you have two asks, split them into two bullets with owners.
- Add a default: “If no reply by 2 PM PT, I’ll merge and monitor.”

## Provide the minimum context

- Link the source: doc, issue, or dashboard.
- State the status in one word: Green / At risk / Blocked.
- Add the why: “At risk — blocked on API quota; need temporary bump.”

## Templates to paste into `/clr`

**Approval:**

Ask: Approve PR #123 by 2 PM PT. Default: merge and monitor if no reply.

Status: Green. Tests and QA passed.

Link: .

**Decision:**

Ask: Choose Option A (ship now) or B (wait for UX copy) by EOD PT.

Context: Risk is low; changes are behind a feature flag.

Link: .

**FYI:**

BLUF: Deploying billing retries to 50% traffic now.

Impact: Expect 2% error-budget uptick; monitoring dashboards.

Link: .

## Polite closers that don’t add fluff

- “Thanks for the quick look.”
- “Appreciate a thumbs up/down.”
- “Let me know if you’d prefer Option B.”

## Let Clear do the trimming

Drop your draft into `/clr`. Clear removes hedging, surfaces the ask first, and keeps your courteous tone intact. The coaching tip highlights where you can be shorter without losing empathy.

Shorter Slack updates with Clear.