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Are thank you notes a thing of the past?


LabattBlue

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my wife's friend has another interesting move.  say she has a birthday party for one of her kids, and thank you cards are in order.  she doesn't write out a specific card to each gift giver, but instead sends the generic picture post card you may get for christmas now.  just a picture of the kid/kids on the front with a preprinted, generic thank you on the back.  

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6 hours ago, Greg S said:

Thank you text, e-mail or note is all acceptable IMHO. Has anyone else noticed that "Your Welcome" has now been replaced with "No Problem". Can someone explain that one.

 

Sure, no problem!

 

https://didyouknowfacts.com/why-young-people-say-no-problem-instead-of-youre-welcome-and-why-older-people-hate-it/

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“Actually, the “you’re welcome/no problem” issue is simply a linguistics misunderstanding. Older ppl tend to say “you’re welcome,” younger ppl tend to say “no problem.” This is because for older people the act of helping or assisting someone is seen as a task that is not expected of them, but is them doing extra, so it’s them saying, ‘I accept your thanks because I know I deserve it.”

 

“No problem, however, is used because younger people feel not only that helping or assisting someone is a given and expected but also that it should be stressed that your need for help was no burden to them (even if it was).”

 

“Basically, older people think help is a gift you give, younger people think help is a requirement.”

 

 

https://allthingslinguistic.com/post/124189121619/no-problem-vs-youre-welcome

Quote

Something interesting to note is also the more literal meaning behind these two phrases and how they themselves differ and oppose each other.

 

‘No problem’, coming from a millennial’s mouth, within the context of helping someone – whether it be holding a door open/picking up something someone may have dropped/etc. – and, naturally, being thanked for it, implies that the kind gesture was indeed, not a problem, that it was just the thing to do, that they were happy to help and that no thanks was really necessary.

 

While a Baby Boomer’s ‘You’re welcome’ in contrast, says something miles different, it actually highlights the fact that the person went out of their way to help someone; almost brings attention to it in a way, saying 'Yeah, I helped you, I did you this favor I accept your thanks.’ which, malicious intent or not, is strikingly different than the millennial downplay of their act of kindness for the sake of helping someone.

 

And lastly, an in-depth article that ultimately shows it doesnt really matter which you use. We, as humans, just need a way to end the conversation while being semi-polite. Too much to quote.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/why-dont-we-say-youre-welcome-anymore_n_5a6fab14e4b0a52682fecef0

 

 

You're Welcome!

Edited by DrDawkinstein
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42 minutes ago, teef said:

my wife's friend has another interesting move.  say she has a birthday party for one of her kids, and thank you cards are in order.  she doesn't write out a specific card to each gift giver, but instead sends the generic picture post card you may get for christmas now.  just a picture of the kid/kids on the front with a preprinted, generic thank you on the back.  

Exactly simplicity is the name of the game when it comes to the future. How simple and fast can you thank someone so you can move on.

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I was raised to always send them, and we always have. But in all honesty, whenever I'm on the receiving end, I usually roll my eyes at how unnecessary it is.

 

Weddings/Baby Showers, I know we're going to receive a thank you card. And if we've given an actual gift (as opposed to cash as a wedding gift), then it makes a little more sense.

 

But if it's a kids birthday or graduation or confirmation, and all I've done is hit the ATM to get cash for the card my wife picked out... No separate thank you is necessary. Thank me when I give you the card, and the matter is done. Go enjoy the money I gave you, or do whatever you want with it. We're done here.

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20 minutes ago, TBBills said:

Exactly simplicity is the name of the game when it comes to the future. How simple and fast can you thank someone so you can move on.

it's a nice gesture to even send them.  we do the thank you cards, but i'm just not sure anyone cares anymore.

16 minutes ago, DrDawkinstein said:

I was raised to always send them, and we always have. But in all honesty, whenever I'm on the receiving end, I usually roll my eyes at how unnecessary it is.

 

Weddings/Baby Showers, I know we're going to receive a thank you card. And if we've given an actual gift (as opposed to cash as a wedding gift), then it makes a little more sense.

 

But if it's a kids birthday or graduation or confirmation, and all I've done is hit the ATM to get cash for the card my wife picked out... No separate thank you is necessary. Thank me when I give you the card, and the matter is done. Go enjoy the money I gave you, or do whatever you want with it. We're done here.

you're right about the occasion.  wedding and showers in general almost always get the written thank you card.  everything else...meh.

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11 hours ago, LewPort71 said:

Thank you notes via text, email or snail mail are all acceptable IMHO.  It's the thought.

My mom was a prodigious letter writer and my sister and I inherited that gene.

I have passed that on to my grandson as I taught him the best three words in the 

English language are "Please" and "Thank You".

 

The next three are  Let's Go BILLS !

Up yours Brady is OK too!

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I wanted to add, I think I get MORE thank you messages than in the past, since they are easier to send via text and email. At the end of the last century, they were very few and far between. I admit to slacking a few times myself. But I've always been a bit lax in remembering stuff like birthdays, anniversaries, Valentine's Day, etc. On the other hand, I tend to do special things for others at random times for no particular reason. It sounds good when I say it to myself, but doesn't necessarily go over too well with girlfriends and such.

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14 hours ago, DrDawkinstein said:

I was raised to always send them, and we always have. But in all honesty, whenever I'm on the receiving end, I usually roll my eyes at how unnecessary it is.

 

Weddings/Baby Showers, I know we're going to receive a thank you card. And if we've given an actual gift (as opposed to cash as a wedding gift), then it makes a little more sense.

 

But if it's a kids birthday or graduation or confirmation, and all I've done is hit the ATM to get cash for the card my wife picked out... No separate thank you is necessary. Thank me when I give you the card, and the matter is done. Go enjoy the money I gave you, or do whatever you want with it. We're done here.

 

13 hours ago, teef said:

it's a nice gesture to even send them.  we do the thank you cards, but i'm just not sure anyone cares anymore.

you're right about the occasion.  wedding and showers in general almost always get the written thank you card.  everything else...meh.

 

Great point, re: the occasion.  When younger, my son would get bday cards/money in the mail from my brother/his family (we don't see each other a lot because his wife is a c) and a friend of the family.  I always asked him to call and thank them.  Really quick, "hey, I got the card, thank you so much," a little obligatory small talk, and done.

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