language

Emails to bosses all use the same, wimpy wording

If you're like me, maybe 70-90% of your work communication now happens over the computer, and a quick scan of past emails will probably reveal a cringe-worthy amount of repeated phrasing: sounds good, works for me, when you get a chance, watch this video of a hedgehog, etc. What might surprise you (or not, if your job involves a lot of TPS reports), is that these textual tools in our office toolbelt appear to be pretty widespread, and some of them are heavily tied to certain power dynamics. In other words, there seems to be a common language of workplace hierarchy.

Read More