To not like "I hope this email finds you well" (or similar) as a professional greeting?

[WindsurfingDreams]

It just sets my teeth on edge. I know the person sending it probably means well, and I am not entirely sure why it annoys me to be honest so I may well be being unreasonable.

I suspect it's partly because I am chronically ill so can't remember the last time I was "well".

But partly it just feels so unnecessary and not particularly professional (particularly when sent outside the organisation).

Anyway, I am partly hoping this thread will give me another perspective so I feel less irritated when I see it

Ps yes I know it is totally trivial etc etc. I don't spend hours dwelling on it!

See I use it, I genuinely mean it. I always feel if I don’t have something like that at the start of an email it feels a bit blunt…

Have to admit I normally just ignore the blurb and reply to the content.

I think it's fine, it's a social nicety, intended to convey good wishes to the recipient before getting down to the tedious business of business.

I use it and genuinely mean it too. I always feel rude and blunt if I just jump right in. It is odd to be irritated by someone wishing you well…

It's just being polite. I hate it when an email starts with Greetings...

We had a sales guy who used it, in a former role he was a high end car salesman. Cringy to my mind.

Up to you what you find annoying, but that greeting doesn't bother me at all.

So what would you use instead?

It's just meaningless gumph to ignore. I think professional letters in French traditionally have even more silly stuff like, "pray accept my distinguished sentiments". Just ignore it

Even starting with Dear is a bit weird if you analyse it.

Like, assistant head who I don't get on with, I'm not actually dear to you am I?

It seems a bit old-fashioned. It reminds me of Little Women. “My Dearest Amy, I hope this letter finds you well…”

Either "thank you for your email/further to my email of... " Or similar.

But can people who don't know me at all, "genuinely mean it?". I do get that if you have worked closely but intermittently over the years it might be appropriate.

I use it all the time for emails on ancestry. Due to the nature of it - some of the recipients might have passed away or had dementia, (suprisingly common in my experience).
Or they might just not be in the place for doing geneology currently so it’s a gentle way of messaging I guess. They can reply once they feel like it - I’ve had relatives and people replying 3-4 years later!!

I moved from a “jump right in” kind of workplace to a “hope you are well” workplace. It was a bit odd at first and seemed like a waste of time but actually, the place had a much kinder, gentler culture overall and this was a reflection of that.

Agreed, I just start all emails with ‘ skibidy bruh, here’s what I need’

cuts the crap. Who need to start anything with a hi, how’s it going? Slows it down.
boom

I use it where it’s someone I know but haven’t seen or spoken to for while and if it feels a bit rude just to launch into whatever it is. I wouldn’t say it to someone I didn’t know already.

Ah see I don't mind nice openers, a bit of fluff etc in an email, it's specifically the reference to health that grates (although I expect that is because I actually never feel well, but a stranger emailing from outside won't know that)

Oh dear. I must have used that as a greeting on half a dozen emails I've written so far today. I'd no idea I might be pissing anyone off.

I genuinely mean it, I think it's nice and I like it when I get an email that starts that way. I use it to oil the social wheels especially when I'm approaching someone for the first time, and it usually precedes me asking them for something...

It's always internal emails, I work for a large organisation. I don't think I'd use it externally.

Ah see I don't mind nice openers, a bit of fluff etc in an email, it's specifically the reference to health that grates (although I expect that is because I actually never feel well, but a stranger emailing from outside won't know that)

I use the same as you. In professional emails I do not hope people are well and I ignore it when others do. It doesn’t really irritate me though. Now people saying Hi on teams, then hope you are well….for goodness sake just tell me what you want!

But that made sense. Someone who held her dear, eg Marmee or Jo, genuinely worried for her. But when it's a relative stranger, or a colleague you just chatted with in the corridor ten minutes ago?

I worked in a very autism-friendly job, with many ND clients, and always found it weird that some people used that phrase in their emails. It can be very confusing to ND people.

I don’t use it internally or to someone who I’ve never emailed before.

But there are some external people that I email a few times a month, and have done for years. Feels a bit rude to jump straight into business but I also find inappropriate to be too chatty. It’s a decent middle ground, IMO.

It's old fashioned, I'm old enough to remember it in letters, but not in business letters- it was the sort of thing I'd have put in letters to elderly relatives or friends of the family!

There are quite a few corporate greetings and sign offs that I read as "fuck you" 😁
This is one of them.