SUMMARY POINTS
It’s not like you’re a newbie at your company anymore. You’re beyond the new hire phase now and have gotten to know all of the key coworkers, managers and executives at the office. And, even more so with everyone in your small group.
Everyone in the office is pretty cordial except for the assholes in the office. People greet each other in the hallways and break rooms. And of course, at most meetings too.
This extends to email introductions too.
Everyone uses the same basic common email greetings like “Hi” or “Hey” followed by the recipient's first name. This is all good for comms among coworkers and colleagues but do we really need to keep using greetings with our closest coworkers?
Everyone in the office is pretty cordial except for the assholes in the office. People greet each other in the hallways and break rooms. And of course, at most meetings too.
This extends to email introductions too.
Everyone uses the same basic common email greetings like “Hi” or “Hey” followed by the recipient's first name. This is all good for comms among coworkers and colleagues but do we really need to keep using greetings with our closest coworkers?
When It Makes Sense To Keep Using Email Greetings
In modern office cultures today, traditional greeting formalities are no longer used. They’ve gone extinct just like three-piece suits and fedoras.
When was the last time you got an email greeting from a coworker that started with “Dear…”
We’d bet you some shitty office coffee that you never have. And if you did, it won’t happen for much longer because that old-school traditionalist is probably going to retire real soon. And thankfully so, because then you won’t get any more outdated voicemails too.
You and most of your coworkers are probably just using the more casual “Hi” or “Hey” more than anything else. It’s the most widely used greeting out there. It’s not too formal and not super casual either. It’s perfect for today’s modern office comms.
This is what you should stick with for almost all your emails. Of course, there may be some exceptions, particularly in more formal industries like legal and finance. In those cases, you may need to use more formal greetings.
Beyond those exceptions, starting your emails with “Hi” or even “Hey” followed by the person’s first name is totally normal and acceptable. What’s not normal is using dorky email signatures. Don’t be that person.
The question is whether it makes sense to keep using “Hi” or “Hey” for email greetings.
When was the last time you got an email greeting from a coworker that started with “Dear…”
We’d bet you some shitty office coffee that you never have. And if you did, it won’t happen for much longer because that old-school traditionalist is probably going to retire real soon. And thankfully so, because then you won’t get any more outdated voicemails too.
You and most of your coworkers are probably just using the more casual “Hi” or “Hey” more than anything else. It’s the most widely used greeting out there. It’s not too formal and not super casual either. It’s perfect for today’s modern office comms.
This is what you should stick with for almost all your emails. Of course, there may be some exceptions, particularly in more formal industries like legal and finance. In those cases, you may need to use more formal greetings.
Beyond those exceptions, starting your emails with “Hi” or even “Hey” followed by the person’s first name is totally normal and acceptable. What’s not normal is using dorky email signatures. Don’t be that person.
The question is whether it makes sense to keep using “Hi” or “Hey” for email greetings.
When It’s Okay To Not Use Email Greetings
Today’s pace of business is crazy fast. It’s gotten to the point where email isn’t fast enough anymore. People resort to using instant messaging and chat to fire off quick questions in the hopes of getting quick answers.
And have you noticed anything peculiar about these messages?
You might have noticed that some of your real-time chats and messages with your closest and most frequent collaborators have even less formality than email, especially with your immediate teammates.
The usual “Hi” or “Hey” is gone. It’s been replaced with the core of the message right up front. This is getting right to the point - no bullshit, no wasting time typing extra keys. It’s delivering the point - now.
And this is a good thing.
When you’re communicating with your immediate and closest coworkers, you don’t want to waste valuable keystrokes on greetings. And quite frankly, they probably don’t need or want to read it either. They want you to get to the point.
This new greeting-less format should be applied to your emails to your most frequent coworkers, the ones where both you and them are all about cutting the crap and getting shit done.
They won’t be offended and neither will you.
Why?
Because when everyone has got work up to their eyeballs and is overwhelmed AF, nobody wants to deal with nonsense fluff and waste precious time and mental energy.
The best way to know when to go greeting-less is to see who contacts you without greetings and gets right to the ask. You can and should reply in like fashion.
In most cases, you can go greeting-less with your immediate team members but probably not your manager, especially if they’re an asshole boss from hell. In that case, stick with the normal greeting.
And have you noticed anything peculiar about these messages?
You might have noticed that some of your real-time chats and messages with your closest and most frequent collaborators have even less formality than email, especially with your immediate teammates.
The usual “Hi” or “Hey” is gone. It’s been replaced with the core of the message right up front. This is getting right to the point - no bullshit, no wasting time typing extra keys. It’s delivering the point - now.
And this is a good thing.
When you’re communicating with your immediate and closest coworkers, you don’t want to waste valuable keystrokes on greetings. And quite frankly, they probably don’t need or want to read it either. They want you to get to the point.
This new greeting-less format should be applied to your emails to your most frequent coworkers, the ones where both you and them are all about cutting the crap and getting shit done.
They won’t be offended and neither will you.
Why?
Because when everyone has got work up to their eyeballs and is overwhelmed AF, nobody wants to deal with nonsense fluff and waste precious time and mental energy.
The best way to know when to go greeting-less is to see who contacts you without greetings and gets right to the ask. You can and should reply in like fashion.
In most cases, you can go greeting-less with your immediate team members but probably not your manager, especially if they’re an asshole boss from hell. In that case, stick with the normal greeting.
Go Greeting-less & Get Shit Done Faster
You’ve got a shitload of grunt work on your plate and it never ends. If you let up, even for an hour, it can mean that you’ll be another ten or twenty emails behind. You gotta get in the zone and bang out those replies - specifically to your teammates who rely on you.
In these instances, it’s time to skip the email greeting niceties and get to the point. Ask the question up front. Fire back that reply. Complete that task.
These quick actions will help you keep the momentum going and give you that sense of progress. And it’s this feeling that will generate that kickass emotion of productive joy.
Feel Better,
[Cubicle|Therapy]
In these instances, it’s time to skip the email greeting niceties and get to the point. Ask the question up front. Fire back that reply. Complete that task.
These quick actions will help you keep the momentum going and give you that sense of progress. And it’s this feeling that will generate that kickass emotion of productive joy.
Feel Better,
[Cubicle|Therapy]