- The Onboarding Lab
- Posts
- Polite and Firm Ways to Redirect Onboarding Conversations for Successful Results
Polite and Firm Ways to Redirect Onboarding Conversations for Successful Results
Techniques to protect the time of your customer and yourself without burning bridges
Clare Knight
August 07, 2025 • Estimated Reading Time: 6 minutes
This week I want to cover a niche topic but one that we have all experienced.
I’m talking about controlling conversations to keep them concise and valuable for everyone involved.
It’s easy to lean into being overly helpful because it’s often our default as onboarding experts.
But…
The pressure to be perpetually available conflicts with the reality that your time directly impacts your team's ability to scale successful customer outcomes.
So, the skillset to practice is mastery of transitions that strengthen relationships whilst protecting the resource that matters most, your (and their) focused time.
And, because I respect YOUR time 😉 I’ve put it into easy to digest steps below. ↓
🧪 The Project: Time Boundaries
Focus on a systematic approach to managing meetings that protects your schedule whilst enhancing customer trust.
The aim is to establish professional boundaries that demonstrate respect for everyone's time. It truly sets the tone for your ongoing relationship.
Step 1: Upfront expectation setting
Begin every customer interaction by establishing clear time boundaries with collaborative language.
Start with something like:
"We’re blocked out until 3:00, which gives us a solid 45 minutes to tackle [specific agenda].
If we need more time, I'd be keen to schedule a focused follow-up than rush through important topics.
How does that sound to you?"
This approach demonstrates professionalism and respect for both your time and theirs.
Position boundaries as a way to ensure quality discussions. Customers should always want quality and excellent results over speed and poor results.