Why is ‘Kind regards’ a bad sign off

[SuperiorM]

So, I’ve just heard that ‘Kind Regards’ is considered passive aggressive. Maybe I’m just old and out of touch but it sounds more like a more friendly’Best wishes’ to me. I suppose I’m going to have to stop using it.

dammit, I thought kind regards was to demonstrate I was pissed off, so I need to drop the 'kind' now.

I say 'many thanks' so often that I'm probably annoying people with it

I have a manager who uses 'best' and it grates.

I've also been told off for not having 'nice' intros like "I hope you are well", or "I trust this email finds you well". Its annoying. Its not like I can see via email.

I use “Dear Mr/Ms” as we’re told not to be too friendly and more formal. For internal emails I use Hi (first name).

I don’t really read anything into greetings and sign offs unless it’s inappropriate or the main body of the email has a tone to it.

....toodles (also toodle-pipksi

I think if I saw this, I'd have to dissociate myself from you forever (joke)

I try really really hard not to say 'sorry' any more in my emails but sometimes do throw in 'apologies' or similar as it just sometimes works to progress a challenging situation!

Ah, my colleagues and I always open with "name".

We don't have time for "I hope this email finds you well and kind regards"

It's certainly not meant unkindly and we all know it, it's just if there's a massive cc situation then everyone knows who the original mail was aimed at.

Eg. 18 cc's but.... Jane, this is the naming protocol.

Everyone gets the info but doesn't feel they have to respond? Jane has the responsibility of naming and job's a good un.

I once accidentally replaced the g in kind regards with a t and didn't realise until it was too late. I was absolutely horrified when I realised so now I stick to Many Thanks as it's much safer (I have occasionally wished people Many Tanks but I feel that's a much safer error)

I find "apologies/sorry to bother you" 100x more aggressive than "name"!

GET. TO. THE. POINT!

I’ve always thought ‘kind regards’ sounds like ‘PIN number’, and used to sign off emails with Regards until someone told me it was considered unfriendly. The thing is, ‘Regards’ means ‘best wishes’ as in ‘give (person) my regards’. There is no such thing as ‘negative’ regards.
I sign ‘BW’ now which is twatty but I like it better than any other options. I wish email would just stop being formal. I literally still get emails starting ‘Dear Pollykitty’ from people I know, and signed Sincerely. It just all sounds pretentious to me.

As a British person, another British person once emailed a non-british medic with "I hope you are well". He was infuriated! "It's him who is ill! WHY is he enquiring after MY health. I am HIS doctor. He is NOT mine!". Made me collapse with laughter trying to explain it's just meant to be a friendly email opener.. ha ha!

The one I'm really hating just now is the trend for abbreviating Best Wishes to BW.

'Sorry to bother you' is code for 'I know you don't like me'

I find kind regards a neutral ‘go to’ sign off. Many thanks if I’m asking for something. Blessings within a religious context (I do admin bits for my church).
I’m kind of rubbish at salutations though! Dear… always seems too formal, hi is too informal, I usually end up with good morning / afternoon. And I’ll usually use I hope this finds you well rather than trust (which does seem rather presumptuous..)

I find "apologies/sorry to bother you" 100x more aggressive than "name"!

GET. TO. THE. POINT!

I hear you. That's not what I do though.

I don't use apologies to someone at my level or that I know how they work / react.

Occasionally I will use 'apologies' with a junior but long time staff member who technically should just do it, but can be obstreperous if they choose.

It's irritating but if it helps to get the job done, I just suck it up.

I prefer direct too, myself.

I find a profusion of "apologies" and "sorry to bother you"s comes in very useful when you are approaching someone in a very senior position, in the hope that they will sort out a fuck-up among their underlings.

I hate it when people put 'xx' at the end of an email or text, usually when they've refused to do something or cancelled something. It's really patronising.

I use Kind regards, or Many thanks at work.

It seems normal if you dont know the recipient or dont know them well anyway.

If it was someone I knew personally I wouldnt see either.

my mother in law signs off all her emails to me with Regards, Jane*
(*name changed).
I've never thought she's being PA. May she is, but I don't think she'd know how to be.

I use “kindest regards” when I’m getting annoyed. I started using it after receiving an email from an HR colleague who was stating the bleeding obvious, and had signed off using it. It feel it hits the right level of being patronising, while not being too obvious.

I usually use Kind regards or Thanks depending on the person.

I do think regards is 'I'm not impressed' although my boss uses it all the time and I am fairly sure that's not what she thinks.

I don't like when people don't use Hi/ Hello/ Dear/ Greeting from afar. One supplier always emails something relating to the day/ month. Such as "Ponti Happy Wednesday to you" she uses a lot of Emoji's as well it makes me very warm towards her

Kind regards for the first email, if there are replies back and forth, it goes to a regards. Never saw it or used it as a passive aggressive sign off, it's just an ending to an email

I'm in no way senior, I'm ops.

I have never apologised for asking a senior colleague for clarity or to perform an aspect of their job (signing off on something) .

I've also never apologised for asking them to sort out a problem, that's why they're at that pay grade.

The stages of email annoyance:

Many thanks
Kind regards
Little Monks 11

Kind regards
Little Monks 11

Regards
Little Monks 11

Little Monks 11

And if you're really annoyed, drop the Dear and just use their name. That's the ultimate passive aggression.

Slightly off topic, but I get really wound up when people ask questions on emails with ?? after.

Is a single question not enough?

My boss constantly does this and I find it quite aggressive especially when it is generally the first time she had asked me something or it’s something she already knows!

Feel like it’s a telling off 😂

A friend made the mother of all fuck ups in her first week in a new role as PA to the director. She sent out a huge email to hundreds of staff on behalf of the director and ended with the typo
'Kind Retards'
😂

I tend to use regards if it's the first exchange, then kind regards for a continuing situation.@

'Stay safe' was also in high frequency during covid