Repair is more than saying sorry
A useful repair has a sequence: lower the threat, own the impact, listen before defending, offer one concrete amends, and change the behavior that caused the harm. Skip the listening and the other person feels managed. Skip the behavior change and the apology becomes theater.
Use this tool when you know something landed badly and you want to return cleanly. For a fuller walkthrough, read what to say after you hurt someone, then use the builder to draft your first message.
Use the right repair size
Small ruptures need quick ownership and a specific next action. Repeated ruptures need pattern repair and evidence over time. If the issue has become a larger trust question, move through the Trust Repair Playbook instead of trying to solve it in one message.