It’s not you, it’s me.
My sister has been hunting me down the last couple of days for some help. She applied to some positions and had a couple of interviews set up. She needed help with drafting an email to tell one prospective employer she didn’t want to interview with them anymore. Apparently, she didn’t want to travel so far (an hour) to interview at a site that was her last choice.
My first thought is: Shouldn’t she call them to cancel the interview? Email is so impersonal and, I might add, a little rude. Then I remembered that she is non-confrontational. That canceling an interview is like breaking up with someone. We want to be the good guy and not burn bridges, but we don’t want to discuss it. No one really wants to know the truth, anyway. We just want to lob the “Thanks, but No.” and run away. So I drafted the email for her. Said she already accepted an offer. Thanks for the opportunity. It’s not you, it’s me.