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When / why / how did "I hope you are well" become a standard email intro? (lemmy.ml)

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

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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.

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[–] Boinkage@lemmy.world 10 points 6 months ago (1 children)

I use this when the tone of my email would otherwise be, where's my spreadsheet motherfucker?? It's nice to modify the overall tone of the email to something more friendly. I have a very curt writing style so I'm often concerned my emails will come off as blunt or demanding if I don't include a pleasantry.

I work in a very friendly, informal field so I find myself doing little pleasantries to fit in, email-wise.

[–] oxjox@lemmy.ml 4 points 6 months ago (2 children)

I would love if my coworkers were more blunt and honest.

"Where the fuck is my spreadsheet" is very concise. It tells me what you want, it tells me what my responsibility is, and it probably tells me the level of priority the issue is for you. "where’s my spreadsheet motherfucker" is similar but, depending on our relationship, I'd take that either far more seriously or more jokingly.

I have one guy I work with who speaks like this. He had to explain himself at first then I was like, yes please continue talking to me like a human. I'm more likely to trust people who don't hide behind pleasantries and are just themselves with me.

[–] Boinkage@lemmy.world 5 points 6 months ago

I think you're answering your own question here.

Your blunt coworker has to explain himself or risks being taken as rude by people who don't know him. You yourself couldn't determine if he was being rude to you without some additional context.

Without further context, you don't know how to interpret an email that says where is my spreadsheet motherfucker.

In both cases, you're saying further social cues are needed to determine if someone you don't know very well is being rude or not. Hence, why people emailing people they don't know very well in a professional capacity include niceties to convey context and tone.

[–] ryven@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 6 months ago

I usually am pleasant, though. I would feel much less human if I just demanded things!