46
submitted 6 months ago by oxjox@lemmy.ml to c/asklemmy@lemmy.ml

Practically every email I've received in maybe the past year has started with "I hope you are well". I even had an LLM draft a placeholder email for me and it started with the same thing. This has not always been the case and it's strange to me that everyone I interact with begins their emails with this line. Frankly, it's annoying AF.

What gives? Who started this? Why has it become so prevalent? More importantly, how do we stop it?

While I'm at it, if you work in tech / customer support, I urge you to speak with your supervisors to minimize the boiler plate copy paste trash you insert into your emails. People dealing with shit that's not working as intended or desired do not have the mental or emotional capacity to wade through your platitudinal nonsense. Get to the fucking point.

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[-] HobbitFoot@thelemmy.club 4 points 6 months ago

One thing that I've found with junior staff is that they feel a need to be overly nice in their correspondence without realizing the interaction takes time.

[-] peg@lemmy.world 9 points 6 months ago

I'm decades beyond being junior staff and I'm always nice in my emails. I don't care how long it takes.

[-] toofpic@lemmy.world 3 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago)

I'm 1(one) decade beyond, and I'm super short and direct with a hint of familiarity. It also works, because it feels humble. It is humble, because you can't hide any second meaning behind "I do this, you do that, okay?"

[-] HobbitFoot@thelemmy.club 2 points 6 months ago

There is a difference between nice and overly nice.

And I'm not talking about the time it takes you to be nice, but the time it takes others to process your niceness.

For instance, burying the lede on what the email is for in order to say "I hope this email finds you well". Use that space to get to the point so that the person on your receiving end can process the email quickly. If it is a request, say please but nothing beyond that.

[-] hightrix@lemmy.world 1 points 6 months ago

100% agreed. Please and thank you are standard. Pleasant tone and asking to work together rather than giving commands is also.

It takes so very little extra effort to be nice.

this post was submitted on 19 Apr 2024
46 points (81.1% liked)

Asklemmy

43783 readers
1141 users here now

A loosely moderated place to ask open-ended questions

Search asklemmy ๐Ÿ”

If your post meets the following criteria, it's welcome here!

  1. Open-ended question
  2. Not offensive: at this point, we do not have the bandwidth to moderate overtly political discussions. Assume best intent and be excellent to each other.
  3. Not regarding using or support for Lemmy: context, see the list of support communities and tools for finding communities below
  4. Not ad nauseam inducing: please make sure it is a question that would be new to most members
  5. An actual topic of discussion

Looking for support?

Looking for a community?

~Icon~ ~by~ ~@Double_A@discuss.tchncs.de~

founded 5 years ago
MODERATORS