When you're in the middle of a phone conversation, but you want to hang up, all you have to do is make up an excuse to shorten that call. It never sounds good to lie, but sometimes it's okay to find an excuse to end a phone call that comes at the wrong time. The easiest way is to invent a specific situation or excuse related to your phone itself to end the conversation or put it off. Do not forget, however, to keep your word and call your correspondent back if you have made a commitment!
Steps
Method 1 of 2: Invent an exceptional situation
Step 1. Pretend the doorbell rang and you need to hang up to go open
Tell the other party that you heard someone ringing or knocking on your door and that you need to go find out what it is. Tell him you'll call him back later.
To make this excuse seem even more realistic, you can knock on a piece of wood or open your door silently to go and ring your front door bell
advice: you can also say that you are expecting guests and that they have just arrived on your doorstep. Your interlocutor will understand that you have no other choice but to hang up to go open to your guests.
Step 2. Say you are in the middle of an activity and you will call back
Make up a realistic household chore or errands to do. Tell the other person it's not a good time and that you will call back later.
For example, you could tell her that you are doing housework, getting ready to go shopping, cooking, dressing… Quickly think of a valid excuse
Step 3. Tell the other person you were about to eat
Say you were just sitting down to dinner, so now is not a great time to chat. Ask the person on the other end to call you back later, or tell them you'll call back when you're done.
- If she insists, say something like, "My dish is cooling down." I'll call you back after you've eaten "or" I'm at the table with friends and I don't want to be rude. I have to leave you. "
- This excuse will work all the better if it is truly time to sit down to eat.
Step 4. Tell the person on the phone that you are going to bed
Take your sleepiest voice and say you were about to go to bed or were taking a nap. Ask the other person to call you back later when you are ready to talk.
- For an even more realistic acting, try pretending to yawn or use a sleepy voice.
- Be careful that this excuse is appropriate for the time you receive the unwanted call. For example, this excuse is really valid if you get this call when you usually go to bed, while the nap excuse will be really believable on a Sunday afternoon.
Step 5. Say you are about to enter a meeting or video conference
Quickly check the time and say you have a meeting or video conference in the next quarter of an hour. Tell the other party that you need to hang up to start preparing.
- For example, if it's 2:22 p.m., say you go into a video conference at 2:30 p.m. and you need the remaining time to prepare.
- This excuse will be credible if you use it during normal working hours.
Step 6. Pretend you've just remembered an important thing to do
Interrupt the other person by saying that you have suddenly remembered this urgent task. Pretend you're in a hurry and tell them you'll call them back, before hanging up your phone.
You could say something like, "I just remembered that I had to pick up my nephew from football in 15 minutes." I have to go, bye ! "Or again:" oh no, I just realized that I had to pick up my suit from the dry cleaners and it closes at 5:00 pm I have to hurry to leave, hi! "
Step 7. Say you need to go to the bathroom
Tell the other person you have the urge and ask them to call you back later if you are not the one doing it.
It's a great excuse to hang up quickly. Most people will feel uncomfortable if you tell them you need to go to the bathroom urgently and will not try to keep the conversation going
Step 8. Make up a family problem
If you really have to hang up, say that you just received a message saying there was a death or hospitalization in your family. This is an excuse to be used only as a last resort. Most people will not try to extend the call after such news.
Be very careful not to use this excuse with just anyone. Do not do this to someone who is close to you, as it may affect that person emotionally
Method 2 of 2: Make up a phone-related excuse
Step 1. Say you receive a second call that you need to answer
Pretend someone else is trying to reach you and you need to take this call. Say you'll call back later before you hang up.
If you are talking on your mobile and your landline is nearby, try adjusting the volume on your landline. This will automatically start ringing and the other party will believe that you are actually receiving a call
Step 2. Say you are almost out of battery
Pretend to check your battery and say the level is almost zero and your phone might cut off at any time. Say you have to hang up to save the little battery you have left because you can't charge it right away.
If you don't know what to do to hang up, say your battery is dead and your phone may turn off at any moment, before hanging up suddenly. Don't forget to turn off your phone or put it in airplane mode. Thus, if your correspondent calls you back, he will think that your phone battery has really failed you
Step 3. Pretend you don't have a network anymore
Say you're on the move and the network is getting worse and worse. Tell the other party that you hear them worse and worse and that you will call back when the network is better.
You can play this card fully pretending not to hear anything at all before hanging up. Say for example: "hello? Hi ? You're still here ? I think I no longer have a network, I can't hear you anymore…”, then hang up
Step 4. Pretend you have a problem with your phone
Tell the other party that your phone is making strange noises or that the touchscreen is making noise. Tell him you have to hang up to see what's wrong.
For example, you can say something like: “I am very sorry, but I can hardly hear you… I think I have a problem with the sound on my phone. I hang up and call you back when I find out what the problem is, are you okay? "
advice: If you tell the other person that you will call them back later, do so. If it is not a relative (if it concerns telephone canvassing, for example), you can hang up without further legal action.
Advice
- If you tell someone you're going to call them back, do it consistently. Otherwise, you will appear unreliable.
- If you get a call from a direct seller, don't bother making up an excuse. You can just hang up without justifying yourself.
- If you just don't feel like talking, just don't answer the phone.
- If you get a call from an unknown number, it's probably someone you don't want to talk to. If it's an important call, the person will leave a message on your answering machine.
