u don’t regret your offensive remark. People can pick up on insincerity very easily.

Don’t try to tread water and talk your way out of the situation with excuses. Avoid blaming your audience for

Who would have thought a year ago that Don Imus, Mel Gibson, and Michael Richards would find themselves drowning in a negative sea of publicity over something they said. Worse yet, many said their initial apology wasn’t genuine.

I hope you never put your foot in your mouth and offend someone or a group. But if you do, here are some tips for damage control. These suggestions are for verbal mistakes. A slightly different series of rules apply for written gaffes.

Admit and own up to your mistake. If you said something that you know is wrong, then you should have no problem immediately apologizing. Everyone knows what it’s like to have something come the wrong way and regret it. They’ll likely identify with your situation and cut you some slack. This doesn’t work if you don’t regret your offensive remark. People can pick up on insincerity very easily.

Don’t try to tread water and talk your way out of the situation with excuses. Avoid blaming your audience for

ial apology wasn’t genuine.

I hope you never put your foot in your mouth and offend someone or a group. But if you do, here are some tips for damage control. These suggestions are for verbal mistakes. A slightly different series of rules apply for written gaffes.

Admit and own up to your mistake. If you said something that you know is wrong, then you should have no problem immediately apologizing. Everyone knows what it’s like to have something come the wrong way and regret it. They’ll likely identify with your situation and cut you some slack. This doesn’t work if you don’t regret your offensive remark. People can pick up on insincerity very easily.

Don’t try to tread water and talk your way out of the situation with excuses. Avoid blaming your audience for

akes. A slightly different series of rules apply for written gaffes.

Admit and own up to your mistake. If you said something that you know is wrong, then you should have no problem immediately apologizing. Everyone knows what it’s like to have something come the wrong way and regret it. They’ll likely identify with your situation and cut you some slack. This doesn’t work if you don’t regret your offensive remark. People can pick up on insincerity very easily.

Don’t try to tread water and talk your way out of the situation with excuses. Avoid blaming your audience for

em immediately apologizing. Everyone knows what it’s like to have something come the wrong way and regret it. They’ll likely identify with your situation and cut you some slack. This doesn’t work if you don’t regret your offensive remark. People can pick up on insincerity very easily.

Don’t try to tread water and talk your way out of the situation with excuses. Avoid blaming your audience for

u don’t regret your offensive remark. People can pick up on insincerity very easily.

Don’t try to tread water and talk your way out of the situation with excuses. Avoid blaming your audience for not having a sense of humor, the person who made you say the remark, or a dark secret in your past. These are stall tactics by someone who does not want to admit they’re wrong

Set the context. Here you can talk about the circumstances surrounding your insensitive comment but don’t point fingers at anyone. You might say, “I was trying to be clever and obviously I showed bad taste

You could also introduce a more personal element by saying something like, “I’ve had a lot on my mind lately and I didn’t think about what I said.” In this case, you don’t talk much about what’s been on your mind because then you’re putting the blame on a problem (a sick relative, a messy breakup, or out of control kids) instead of accepting responsibility for your remarks.

Mo