38
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
this post was submitted on 17 Nov 2023
38 points (100.0% liked)
Chat
7507 readers
11 users here now
Relaxed section for discussion and debate that doesn't fit anywhere else. Whether it's advice, how your week is going, a link that's at the back of your mind, or something like that, it can likely go here.
Subcommunities on Beehaw:
This community's icon was made by Aaron Schneider, under the CC-BY-NC-SA 4.0 license.
founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
"No problem" always makes me think that a problem was expected, or that even there might be problems soon!
"You're welcome" to me sounds like a natural, polite acknowledgement that I've appreciated what they have just done. It feels like it would be weird for someone to pretend they haven't just brought me food or whatever.
We're using "problem" to mean "imposition", not "difficulty"/"error".
"I had no problem with having to do this for you", not "I encountered no problems while doing this".
'No problem' is me telling you that I was happy to do the service for you, such that it wasn't an imposition to do. When I do something for a person I like, I have 'no problem' expending the effort to do it.
If I have to do the same for someone I don't like, I will have a problem with having to do it, but since it's my job I will not begrudge them whatever it is: they are welcome to it, since it's my job to provide it. But I don't have to be happy about it.
'Sure thing'/ 'ya no worries'/ 'ya of course', etc are neutral phrases.
Bear in mind though that tone and body language are ultimately what you should be cuing on. When I deliver an unhappy "you're welcome", it will be deadpan, and I won't be smiling.
No, I know, but it still sounds bizarre, as if it were going to be an imposition to be brought food, or that asking for a jug water might be. Imposing on someone is still a difficulty & as a customer, one is imposing on the worker to a degree.
I agree that tone & body language are far more important than the words, and also that a lot of people use whichever phrase their boss prefers them to use.