To ask why people say, 'nice to see you'....?

[mariposa1998]

.....when it's just meaningless waffle and they might not even care/didn't want to see you?

I know that it's politeness and a pleasantry, but I just find it insincere and silly. I'd rather just say bye. Maybe I'm just projecting?

I only ever say that to people when I am genuinely happy to see them.

Haha no, I haven't been in work today!

That's good, I think it's fine to say it in those cases. I just dislike when people say it and it's insincere, and they really think, 'oh no not you' 😅

I say it to people when I’ve enjoyed the chat, I’ve also never said it just for the sake of it.

It isn't said to me a lot, most of the people I see on a daily basis are people I always see (my family and housemates, colleagues).

Haha he sounds quite odd/eccentric? Or maybe he is on the spectrum (I am not calling people with ASD odd)?

Is it something you should only say to someone you haven't seen in a while? I've heard it said when the people literally saw each other two days ago....

Maybe they are pleased to see you. Today I bumped into a neighbour I hadn't seen for well over a year. We caught up and as we parted I said, 'Nice to see you,' because it was.

I am not offended by it at all. It would be like being offended when the Starbucks barista says, 'have a lovely rest of your day!'.

I'm saying I don't like it when it's insincere and said by someone you know.

lol my manager who never otherwise touches base with me even when she’s knows I’ve been unwell, well when she sends me a teams message forst of which says ‘Hi, how are you?’ it really gets my back up and I feel so angry inside 😅 - because without fail, hot on the heels without waiting for a reply will be a request to support her with some work. Before I used to acknowledge it like a naive bunny before penny dropped that no-one cares’ 😭! So I just ignore all niceties now and just answer the work Q 😑

Well if you meant it then that's great, and absolutely the right time to say it! But I think some people say this when they are really thinking, 'oh sh!t not you', ahah. There are other polite phrases you can say instead, like, 'well we need to be going, see you', or just 'bye/see you'.

I only say it if I mean it

Good for you!

@LittlleMy That's insincere and annoying of her, but in professional contexts (and in hospitality, when the staff are acting as professionals), we can expect meaningless niceties. Outside of that though, I think people don't need to be insincere!

Yeah because what this world needs is more rudeness and ignorance.

When I'm saying bye to someone I always make sure I tell them to fuck off and I didn't enjoy seeing them at all. It's much better.

I was looking for this!

It wasn't that long ago.

Was it? 😂

I think it's nice that people are polite and say nice things to each other. Can't imagine how anyone could have a problem with this.

I'm out walking every day with my dog, and when we encounter other dog walkers and have a brief chat they often say "Enjoy your walk" as we part ways. Perhaps they don't really care if I enjoy my walk, but I like that they say it anyhow. 🤷🏻‍♀️

It doesn't build a 'deep connection' if it isn't personal though, and is just said as a nicety. I'm not offended by it or against it per se, I just find it irritating outside of professional/hospitality contexts unless the speaker truly means it...

The generation game with BF must have been on around... oh, 10 years ago now!

I'm not asking for rudeness or ignorance, but there are ways to be polite without pretending to like/value someone's presence when you don't. That's outside of a professional context that is, where everything is just a nicety and we can expect it.

So do you ask everyone that says this to you if they mean it or not? Do you tell them to take it back if they didn't?

@HerVagestyTheQueef I think, 'enjoy your walk', is a bit different though.....it's just obviously a parting greeting, it's like saying 'enjoy your meal' to a customer in a restaurant. 'Nice to see you' is different, it sounds a bit more personal, except it isn't always.

I have nothing against people being polite but I don't think we need to act overly friendly if we don't mean it.

It's a very useful thing to say instead of "how are you?" to people who will take twenty minutes bloody telling you.

It's also much easier to excuse yourself from a lengthy conversation when you boost someone's ego a little bit.

It's usually said as a parting greeting though, so you've already had a conversation with the person.

And exactly this - the person is using 'nice to see you' to excuse themselves from you, because they don't really want to see you!! 😂

Oh yes absolutely! What’s the deal there lol - probably the unstoppable innate British politeness!