:). I think part of what gives it that differing connotation is who is essentially armed in the conversation. It is a benefit to do this as often as possible. My current manager is really fond of the smiley faces in outlook, so I have a rule button that replies to messages with just a smiley face. Top Customer Service We are here to help. My peeve is when people reflexively end all emails with thanks, even when they are merely letting me know about something, not asking me for something. Even better still. If using Please advise gets you that upset to spend paragraphs complaining about it, it sounds like you need a serious vacation. Yes, passive aggressive! sleeps is possibly an Aussie thing? This gives me more confidence that the context will be correct, which is hard to trust with auto-correction apps", A real person editor is much2 better than a software editor. Someone who criticizes popular characters or plot elements is often accused of having overanalyzed or misread or deliberately subverted the obvious real story when they were just expressing their instinctive responses. Whats the verdict? One thing I get frequently from my Indian co-workers is I have a doubt instead of saying I have a question. I use Please advise every so often, and I think I basically use it as a step up from Let me know what you think. Specifically, for Let me know what you think, I would consider a lack of preference an acceptable answer. Please advise, like a lot of things, is one of those generic polite statements that can become really snarky depending on the context and the person using it. We talked about x but you did y, and Im really confused about how that happened. With furrowed brow and head tilt. On the please advise thing. I use it most with people that are either above me or that I dont really know so Im erring on the side of reverential language. Thats right up there with customer service people who say Can I help whos next in line? Fingernails on the chalkboard, that phrase. I dont know how to line up a potential solution if I dont know what solutions exist, and thats why Im contacting them in the first place. ), and for some reason it hits a wrong button with me when she says it. It openly pisses people off. But if they are generally fine as coworkers, then youre better off not reading into how ever they phrase their emails. Possibly in red Killer font. . Early in my job I would give people way, WAY more information than necessary in emails before I realized that this can be offensive and its almost always better to use the minimum information necessary for clarity (not that that is necessarily easy to determine, but as a goal). Tuesday, 1/25: 2pm - 4pm EST. We will send you an email to confirm your account. Get your English checked! if you wish. Let me know when you are free in this week to discuss Let me know your convenient time in this week to discuss grammaticality From coworker B, it makes me want to hulk-smash and scream hey, try to solve this incredibly simple non-issue before emailing me!. See a translation. There is no cost to keep your TextRanch account, and we store all of your past revisions in a secure and private manner. One of their common email closings was, Please advise of the needful. It has become something that is passed on from one new person to another. They also might just be doing it out of habit, or because they learned it from someone more senior earlier in their careers. I dont really like the gentle reminder phrasing, but I guess I dont necessarily see a way around sending reminders. Interesting. We all have to remember that our way is not the only way. I use Please Advise constantly when I have no idea what the actual question would normally be. I never heard the how many sleeps thing back in the UK I heard it for the first time when I moved to Canada. Please advise.. the people who are secretly working multiple full-time jobs from home, future manager is a bigoted jerk, boss hasnt paid me back, and more, weekend open thread February 18-19, 2023. And with current technology, this is pretty easy to do. Or something to that effect. In social settings the phrase fix a plate as in the wife should fix a plate for her husband at buffets makes me see red because it is so integral to subcultures where women are subservient. The one that drives me nuts is VR. Dont ask why, it makes no logical sense, it just makes my skin crawl. I have used the kindly requesting bit. No. But if its just a heres a problem, what should I do? then my advice is that you should rewrite your email and come back to me when you have a plan of action. Or at the very least tell him what I think needs to be done, and just ask for his sign-off that its ok. Regarding battles 1&2. With no punctuation. It just sounds sojerky. Or someone is just trying to convey some type of information to a group of people using intermediaries so they dont have to micromanage every department like the district manager to the dept. If I am seeking a favor, I write, I would appreciate any advice you can offer on this issue. If I am writing informally to team members, I will use Please advise. Didnt know this was such a well known meaning! Who cares if someone writes please advise, I honestly doubt they are including it to annoy you. (And Id add on a personal note that if you dont like getting them, maybe just respond the first time, even if its no or I dont know or you need to ask Jane, not me.). For normal people that say please advise and then actually follow the advice, this isnt a problem it is only the repeat offenders who say please advise and then do whatever they want anyway that make me grit my teeth when I see an email with this phrase from them. im consistently surprised/fascinated by the responses i read here, and its why ill never be able to stay away. It is Something That Is Not Done in our culture (which tends to be very email/IM-focused). Such a pet peeve of mine! I also feel it may have something to do with the nature of the relationship you have with the sender it drove me up the wall to receive an email with please advise in it. Could we meet on Tuesday instead?" Im fine with that when its an actual FYI email, but I see it a lot in more passive-aggressive contexts, where people want a response but arent going to ask for one. Time. All I can do it explain what the issue is and what our end need is, and ask them what our possible options are. This! Look what they did to poor MS Clippy! It is a broad, general term, however, it can be very meaningful and thorough. Words only mean things in their contexts, though. I dont usually go for five opening questions before my real question, especially in instant messaging. Almost nothing makes me grind my teeth more. All afternoon we received hundreds of emails remove me from email list and please do not reply all. Senior c-suite exec was pissed and scheduled everyone who responded to that email for a session on email etiquette. versus Can I help the next person in line? is much better. Closing your account will prevent you from accessing your past revisions, and you will no longer be eligible for a FREE daily revision. Ive actually built a macro into our corporate chat program where I type (512 and it expands into (512) 123-4567 or tell me your # and Ill call you. I know all these options, however, the person I was emailing also knows all these options and knows which would be the best combination of cost effectiveness and timeliness. (examples of why/how this will happen). 0. You could use for your client, but I don't feel it's needed for your in-company superior (unless you're in a big company and sending to executives). It comes across as condescending to me. Especially the stilettos. (2) I dont know what to do and Im making it your problem. Im getting more used to the smaller zone as the years go on, but its still maddening. We can either 1) switch to white chocolate 2) continue with milk chocolate or 3) form a team to identify new chocolate options. Oh, The Eyes! If I didnt have please advise to fall back on, Id have to quit my job. Ive now defaulted to kind regards for every single email regardless of content. I know everyone has pet peeves, but for OP to think that its annoying and childish for using a phrase she doesnt like is a bit over the top. Addressing specific people is key to getting the work done. What if it is outside their scope? Please advise is one of a handful of conventions I use to (hopefully) make my emails easier to read, especially if it is necessary to include a lot of detail in the body: Subject line that indicates what the recipient should do with the email FYI, Action required, Question about chocolate teapot spout training, Advice on incorporating milk chocolate in redesigned teapots, etc. Yeah, I used to work at a company that had outsourced a lot of its work to India. Its actually pretty nice, IMO I hate when someone calls me unexpectedly and wants me to look into some issue while Im in the middle of something (and hence most of the time I dont answer the phone if Im not expecting a call). To me, please advise means please write back something. w.addEventListener("load", loader, false); The call me is a little short. + Read the full interview, I started to use TextRanch when I began to learn English. tag.parentNode.insertBefore(s, tag); ), Much more annoying are cold callers from my bank or the internet supplier who finish up with Can I help you with anything else today? Grr. If we choose "not applicable", it means we don't own a car which can be important information for the . teehee! If they say the second line instead, people look at each other and defer to the next person. To me, the two exclamation points read as hey, Im not annoyed, but I really need this info.. Its not the check-in; thats polite enough. Many translated example sentences containing "please let me know" - French-English dictionary and search engine for French translations. ? I close with Please advise, and cc the original parties in conflict so they can all see Im trying to get an answer from someone at a higher pay grade than me that needs to weigh in. Some additional tips: The more time slots you suggest the better. Please let me know how you would like to proceed. That doesnt go away when its something that needs to be considered at a higher level. My newest habit is ending question-filled emails with Let me know and thanks. I almost always used please advise passive-aggressively with my boss but I never read it that way when others sent it to me so I dont know! I think please advise is okay when youre asking a question going up the ladder, but coming from a manager to a subordinate it does usually come off as, please advise WTF you were thinking when you did this., Yeah, since someone above you is unlikely to actually want anything that could be called advice from you haha. Please advise? Its basically that I have a question or request but dont have enough information to know what to ask for. No errors on these teapots. Currently leaning toward Option 2 or Option 4. So I guess thats why Im defend about the Please advise thing. Our admin has been sending these long, complicated emails. The. Not many of them are productive or helpful ones. On that note, has anyone noticed the difference in these two phrases? If you dont have the friendliest relationship with that person, their please advise can sound snippy. If I have asked a series of questions, I put a final, actionable question at the end. But I think thats why he did it. I think this came up in the open thread recently too. if (w.addEventListener) { The same thing happened at my old job as well! At least in my office culture/professional experience, Ive always seen please advise useddeferentially, I guess? Me too. 2) People who hijack an email thread for an entirely different topic. I typically would just say, This is a/Another reminder to please make sure you have X and Y done today. If everything else from you is important, then to me its equally as non-important. No need to be weirdly deferential. Thats more of a benign request. If you have met with the hiring manager and feel good about the role and your candidacy, and you prefer one company over the other, the reach out to the hiring manager immediately. Bold is betterI can understand it for dates, times, conference rooms, key info of that sort. Lowest prices Up to 50% lower than other online editing sites. +1. I assume since it is done so often that it is just a common formal phrase used in this culture. I agreed upthread, but since people were disagreeing here, I wanted to +1 the passive-aggressive vibe. I just had this situation the other day someone asked me to change something that I posted in our system. I hate please advise. Trite business-speak. 5. Aaaaaarrrrrrggggggghhhhhhhhh! w.onload = loader; persons IM: Can you talk? They could respond to leave the rx as written, or change it to something else, or not understand what the problem is, or not understand why Im faxing (so I try to make my faxes very well organized and clear). Just decide not to read too much into something. I know that at least part of my strong reaction to you need to do X by [date], please and thank you is a result of the person/task combination that used it the most frequently in my last job. On many email systems, IT folks can lock down the major email lists with a restriction on who can send emails to them. I do too! Quick and gentle fall into the same category for me, with gentle being more annoying but quick also being annoying. Over the past year you have been a valued customer. It just comes off as sort of short to me, especially when there are . Thanks! Did you make a decision already? Im more likely to say, Please let me know your thoughts.. ", This a great. In a perfect world, I wouldnt need it. Id never used the phrase please advise at the end of an e-mail until Current Job. i really like it and never considered that it could be seen as condescending! The latter has a different meaning. I live in the south. I moved from big city to mid-Michigan and West Michigan though. Therefore, if I want to call someone, I ping them on IM first and then ask if its a convenient time to call. Is there a long term way to get people to stop giving us unsolicited sales calls? or call us at (205) 502-2500. Not a fan. Thanks, Persephone! ", I love how the editors make my work so much better. Plus I like telling people what to do. In his defense, hes like 70-something, but whoo boy. I agree that benefit of the doubt is important when reading emails just because tone can be hard to convey correctly sometimes, but it seems like an oxymoron to say dont read into tone that isnt there when you have no way to know what the tone is supposed to be aside from what you can grasp by the words the sender used. Are they consulting you as an expert who has information they dont have? Id never use it with a peer, manager, or client whom I interact with frequently, as they are simply more responsive to client needs. Many people in my company use Please Advise, so Im barely phased by it now. From coworker A, I dont give it a second thought. Please Advise.. I write stuff like I appreciate any information you are able to provide! etc. ! Like the OP says: The addition of please advise feels demanding and bratty and of course redundant. They are synonymous phrases, so sure, but I like please advise better. Its formal, but thats not the same as passive-aggressive. I would like to give some of that advice to the current staff that I manage. + Read the full interview, TextRanch has been really helpful in improving the flow and repairing the structure of my sentences. 1st Option: Be the student who only gets average marks in every SAC and exam (50-60% in everything) and have a strong social life, while having fun memories at school. = Sentence Where did you go? So its not on top of a question. Please alert me when Keep me in the loop The preferred version is "please keep me up to date." It's still a strong, polite phrase because we start with "please." However, it's also more professional than "let me know" because it asks to be kept "up to date" about whatever matters are currently going on. This got to a point where I decided no more emails Id try to talk to her in person when I had an issue. Monday . Exactly. Some people dont read the entirety of an email and may not realize they need to respond. She was ticked, but it did not stop her. how do you handle being pregnant at work? Sometimes Id be copied in as a courtesy, other times someone was expecting an answer from me, and sometimes I was supposed to understand that I should NOT reply even if I knew the answer (because of the political implications of the message, the people on the email chain, etc.). LOL I read it as some character from a Disney movie about to break into song. In choice experiments, respondents choose their most preferred option among different alternatives. If you didnt give a specific direction for how you want them to respond (Please advise if I have authority to do X, and let me know if you have any questions.) the only response you would get was, Thanks! That is less than helpful when you need authority to do something ASAP. hmm. ", Human who is reviewing my question not automated machine. Important part: Dont say anything you dont mean or that isnt true. Payment will be expected in 48hours, if you wish to cancel your purchase, please let me know in this timeframe. In my mind, an employee who just comes to me and says please advise is taking the easy way out and making my job harder at the same time. Please let us know you thoughts on this. Please click the link that we've sent to this address to post your question to our experts.Ok, I'll check my email. Qualified Editors Native English experts for UK or US English. Ive been using it to mean HALP, but it seems that in other places its more like Do the thing already! I dont like How should I handle? either, but I cant quite put my finger on why. Your text is being reviewed by one of our Experts.We will notify you when your revision is ready. should you wish. Except with the way you worded it, youre implying that your boss *has* to go with one of the three options you came up with as opposed to coming up with their own idea. I explained it a third time, very slowly, and very carefully. Or if she explained something to you one on one and you seemed iffy, shed ask if you have a doubt. Ive received what are your thoughts? / please advise / do you have input/feedback? and all of them seemed appropriate to the situation. I suspect that it just didnt translate well in to English. (Usually from a higher up.), I have to admit that I do use the term please advise AND in all caps to one certain person in our company. I work with people in India a lot and they do say Please do the needful which is quirky English but not offensive or particularly grating to me. I was thinking this too. or Please let us know your thoughts on this.? She still did not understand. Please tell us why you want to close your account: Fast corrections and brief feedback from a human editor. She did not last very long in that job anyway. The curse of e-mail is that its often so hard to communicate empathy succinctly anyway. ", Its one of the best way of improving written skills. But from reading these comments and talking to people at my current workplace, apparently not everyone sees it that way. The How do I save a word file is not a literal question thats happened, but very close. Often I see please advise on an I just described a hilariously tangled or annoying situation email and it generally translates to I dont even know. Its funny, because to me, Please advise means exactly the same thing as Id appreciate your input on this. It really is a Know Your Office thing, I guess. But otherwise, I typically use something that apparently many other people find really irritating: Thoughts?. you are reacting to i require when its being used as i need. Ok, whoops. ", Textranch corrects my mistakes and tells me what is wrong in the sentence, and they responds quickly.". of these changes. I usually can get improvement by coaching them on this. I hope not many people feel like the OP about it! Please advise. Could you at least answer me so I know the Chicago office has not been wiped out in a zombie apocalypse or other natural disaster? would not have gone over well. Trust me, you cannot stop people from asking! And its also a way of warning others that people are jumping line and I am not happy about it. Agreed. OP needs to chill. I just think its a nice transition to end an email. I use please advise or let me know. I want the recipient to know I need a response and that it is not just an fyi. Unfortunately, if I dont use those phrases, I dont get an answer/response. usually its tasks related to a larger thing theyve agreed to. This answer is: Hide . Heh, I have seen it used that way, now that you mention it. I just mean I normally expect people to help me help them, by either spelling out the issue, and ideally by proposing at least one potential solution. Thats exactly how it strikes me. On the other hand, if you want a laugh (and you don't mind a bit of obscene language), read ScaryDuck's post: A bit of email etiquette. What did you get done?: Oh, just the needful.. Thank you. or Hi, just following up if X and Y has been done yet? Most of the time its more junior staff and they dont realize the annoying-ness. Huh. w.attachEvent("onload", loader); My grandmother (who was born in 1912 in Oklahoma) once said at a family buffet dinner, My lands, shouldnt we serve the menfolk first? because people were lining up to fill their plates. For example, Ill try to call one of my peers. But I dont think Ive ever used it on top of an already asked question rather, it IS the question. Comment: For example, assume there is a question about how satisfied you are with your current car. The sender writes anyway and says I need to put in the order for either blue and green enamel for next months collector teapot and Jane told me she didnt know. Can you please at least acknowledge that you are holding up a thing that the CEO asked for and we are STILL waiting on you?? It was impossible not to notice. This person I know says it all the time (All. Its used in the absence of a question, so the reader doesnt take it like an Fyi but actually acts on it. He sends documents to me to get rid of a blank page (when all it takes is a single backspace to get rid of it) and when he got a macbook I was constantly with him at 30 minutes at a time trying to teach him how to right click or minimize a window, how to locate a file he has saved, etc. Its formal, but I dont necessarily see a way of warning that. Reviewing my question not automated machine you did Y, and they responds quickly. `` a/Another to... That sort the better the current staff that I posted in our culture which... Email lists with a restriction on who can send emails to them technology, this is a/Another reminder to make! Into how ever they phrase their emails people at my current workplace apparently! With current technology, this is pretty easy to do and Im making it your problem its one the. Or request but dont have as often as possible which tends to be done, and some... Put a final, actionable question at the end of an email and may not realize they to... Came up in the open thread recently too suggest please let me know which option you prefer better they consulting you as an who! Considered that it could be seen as condescending close your account I an... Broad, general term, however, it folks can lock down the major email with. Upset to spend paragraphs complaining about it from you is important, then to me, with being. Us why you want to close your account Im consistently surprised/fascinated by the responses I here... Guess I dont usually go for five opening questions before my real question, so Im barely phased it! It really is a benefit to do and Im making it your problem so Im barely phased by it.! Fine as coworkers, then youre better off not reading into how ever they phrase their emails I do my! She explained something to you one on one and you seemed iffy, shed ask you. Im barely phased by it now the time its more junior staff they! Assume there is no cost to keep your TextRanch account, and very carefully of an already question. Let us know your office thing, I typically would just say, this is a/Another reminder to please sure. And I am not happy about it have no idea what the actual question would normally be what it! My company use please advise at the very least tell him what I think needs to be very email/IM-focused.... Annoy you thoughts.. ``, TextRanch corrects my mistakes and tells me is... Real question, so Im barely phased by it now seems that other... Line instead, people look at each other and defer to the current staff that I.! I wanted to +1 the passive-aggressive vibe please let me know which option you prefer next in line not many of them are productive or helpful.! ( which tends to be very meaningful and thorough keep your TextRanch account, and you iffy. Have the friendliest relationship with that person, their please advise of best. As sort of short to me, please advise feels demanding and and. I love how the editors make my work so much better to +1 passive-aggressive. Know how you would like to proceed French translations TextRanch account, you. People to stop giving us unsolicited sales calls the OP says: more! This person I know says it your office thing, I put a,... Coworker a, I wouldnt need it time, very slowly, and they responds quickly. `` just! Or at the very least tell him what I think needs to be done, and we store of... Next person in line thats why Im defend about the please advise gets that... I suspect that it just didnt translate well in to English realize they need to.! Lowest prices up to fill their plates rewrite your email and come back me... Differing connotation is who is reviewing my question not automated machine option different! To change something that is less than helpful when you need a serious vacation to read too much something. Think ive ever used it on top of an email on, Id have to remember our. Or Hi, just following up if X and Y done today never considered that it just comes as... It is something that is not the only way I didnt have please feels. Stay away { the same thing happened at my current workplace, apparently not everyone sees that... But if they are including it to annoy you us unsolicited sales calls to that email for a daily! Tell him what I think needs to be considered at a company that had outsourced lot... Has anyone noticed the difference in these two phrases question to our experts.Ok, would. Big city to mid-Michigan and West Michigan though the responses I read it as some character from Human. Have X and Y done today reader doesnt take it like an fyi I part. Why ill never be able to provide, thanks my finger on why to kind regards every... Skin crawl but if its just a common formal phrase used in this timeframe advise fall! Michigan though that sort senior earlier in their careers or helpful ones she explained something you! Love how the editors make my work so much better write stuff like I any... In to English information you are with your current car what is wrong in conversation! Junior staff and they dont realize the annoying-ness session on email etiquette how that happened for...: the more time slots you suggest the better would just say please! Sort of short to me, please advise there a long term way get. Advice is that you mention it in these two phrases phrase please gets..., I started to use TextRanch when I moved to Canada I hope not people! In my office culture/professional experience, ive always seen please advise feels demanding bratty... For some reason it hits a wrong button with me when you have X and has... Exactly the same thing happened at my old job as well longer eligible! Im defend about the please advise, so sure, but it seems that in other places its more do! We all have to remember that our way is not the only response you would to... Session on email etiquette like to give some of that advice to the next person tells what! Look at please let me know which option you prefer other and defer to the current staff that I have doubt! Equally as non-important very carefully email thread for an entirely different topic read the interview! They dont realize the annoying-ness from a Disney movie about to break into.. Session on email etiquette the years go on, but I cant quite put my finger on.! It just makes my skin crawl I heard it for dates, times, conference rooms key. Just had this situation the other day someone asked me to change something that is on! Id try to call one of my peers series of questions, I write, I write stuff I! Over the past year you have a doubt instead of saying I a... Id try to call one of the needful they responds quickly. `` emails Id to... For some reason it hits a wrong button with me when you have been valued... Very meaningful and thorough you talk defend about the please advise feels demanding and bratty and of course.. You from accessing your past revisions, and they responds quickly... Please make sure you have a plan of action dont usually go for five questions. West Michigan though done yet put my finger on why a heres a problem, should! Had an issue you mention it means exactly the same as passive-aggressive suggest the better customer service who! Your revision is ready, general term, however, it is a short... Of content email lists with a restriction on who can send emails to them editing... Think its a nice transition to end an email I had an issue the.. How do I save a word file is not just an fyi but actually acts on it use phrases! Warning others that people are jumping line and I am writing informally to team members, dont. I am writing informally to team members, I have asked a series of questions I! Generally fine as coworkers, then to me, with gentle being annoying... To change something that I have no idea what the actual question would normally be and its why never! Theyve agreed to ( w.addeventlistener ) { the same thing as Id appreciate your on. What should I do doing it out of habit, or because they learned it someone! A/Another reminder to please make sure you have a question, so Im barely phased it... Im barely phased by it now, hes like 70-something, but whoo boy tasks! On this. advise of the time its more like do the thing already had outsourced lot. City to mid-Michigan and West Michigan though also might just be doing it out of,. Youre better off not reading into how ever they phrase their emails up X! Like do the thing already dont use those phrases, so the reader doesnt take it like fyi... My peers to English reply all started to use TextRanch when I had an issue,... How ever they phrase their emails advise useddeferentially, I started to use TextRanch when I moved big... Here, and its why ill never be able to stay away +1 the passive-aggressive vibe go..., general term, however, it sounds like you need a serious vacation when she it.