Do Not Volunteer a Negative

At a semi-upscale wood-fired grill-type of restaurant, I asked the waitress if they had lemonade. 

She answered,

“We do. It’s fresh-squeezed, but there are no free refills.”

This threw me for a moment. It was one of those Midwest 100+degree days this past summer with steam bath humidity, and I was dying for a refreshing lemonade. Then I heard a negative.

Of course I still ordered it, and frankly would not have cared how much it cost for the first one. But I bet that some people might decide to not order after hearing that negative statement.

Why bring up a negative?

I do hear sales reps do the same thing:

“Yes, we do have left-handed adapter modules. But they do not work with if you install them with the G-ring cables.”

I’ve been watching episodes of the first season of Boston Legal (which I believe is the best-written show on television), and one of the attorneys was at a deposition with her client. She had to stop him for a side-discussion while he was being questioned by the opposition since he was sharing incriminating information that was not in direct response to the question. Similar situation! Share unnecessary information and it can be detrimental.

Focus on the positives!