Give me some money, you bastard…
Same here.
I think it’s unprofessional to end your business email (or indeed regular mail) with anything cutesy like that.
I used to get five or six long, ranty, angry e-mails every day from a particular client who had his signature set to say
Cheers,
Gilbert
<company info>
Which always struck me as very funny. You are a liver-bellied eel and I despise you and everything your team does for me. May you all rot in hell. Cheers!
You have a point. Apparently a lot of people are offended by this expression, at least judging by the consensus here. So it’s unprofessional to use it by that standard.
That said, I wonder if the consensus of this board is typical. I’m betting if I started a thread and complained about a co-worker signing his emails “peace be unto you” and said “how dare he throw his muslim religion around in public like that?” some of the same people complaining about “have a blessed day” would turn around and call me a bigot.
Why would anyone be forced into doing this?
That struck me as really funny. However I don’t think that joke would have gone over very well until about… hmmmmm… 2006 maybe?
I don’t think this board is truly a cross section of America. I think the responses in this thread are disproportionately representing the opinions of caucasian atheist liberals from the northern US (based on my impression of this board’s demographics). Since the majority of people who use this phrase are African American (at least from the experience of myself and even sven) some might consider it racist or at least culturally insensitive for someone to complain about “Have a blessed day” anyway.
I think it’s horrible. Maybe because I live in heathen Australia, but the expression alone makes me cringe, let alone at the end of a work-related email.
The question again is not if one is offended, but if using the expression is professional or not. And it’s not, unless you are in the a religious work setting. We did an installation at a Catholic church and the priest would also sign off with “God Bless” or something like that.
The “Have a blessed day” is fundamentally different than “bless you” after a sneeze, because the “bless you” or Gesundheit is a social customary expression, and possibly comes from a superstitious origian. Seemingly a small difference, perhaps, but welcome to society, where subtlety abounds.
I don’t know if that is a valid comparison. First, the OP said he/she was not offended, but just wondered if the expression is professional or not. Had the OP been framed in as contemptuous terms as your hypothetical one, the replies may have been different.
As an atheist, looking at the two expressions, “peace be unto you” and “have a blessed day” does seem different to me. Living in Japan, I’m not on the receiving side of either one, but it does appear that the former is a translation of a common Arabic cultural greeting while the later does not, with the possible exception of African American women. However, I have worked with Black professionals and have not heard that expression, let alone seen it in an email, so I would still think it’s unprofessional for much the same reasoning as others have given – it’s bringing in a private belief into a professional setting, in that there are enough Evangelists who wave their religion around.
Is “peace be unto you” professional or not? I would think that if I were emailing someone from Saudi Arabia, I wouldn’t think twice about it because I don’t know how common the practice is. If an American Muslim in the office were to constantly bring his religion into every conversation, then I would agree it’s not professional.
Were he to get into my face with his religion even one tenth as much as my brother-in-law does with his Christianity, then yes, I would as sick of it. Or at least one-tenth as sick of it.
Yeah it’s not unprofessional because it’s offensive. It’s because it’s overly informal and personal.
But it’s not something to get overly concerned about. I would just make it clear in the company handbook what style and format company communications should follow.
OTOH if I were receiving such an email from another company I wouldn’t think much of it. We dealt with various internationals, and it can be surprising what passes for standard business practice around the world. Chalk it up to cultural differences.
I agree the OP didn’t raise this issue. But I feel that some of the responses did.
I don’t believe that I’ve ever heard an African American use this phrase, but it’s pretty common among white women in my area (North Texas). And while some of them might be (neo) pagans, the majority of them wear crosses as jewelry. Not crucifixes, crosses.
The receptionist at my old doctor’s office used to call me to remind me about my appointments, and leave the message with “Have a BLESSED day!” at the end on my answerphone. So do a couple of other office workers at various other places, either leaving the message on my answerphone (I use a landline, and an answering machine, for most of my phone needs) or in an email (yes, I have been dragged kicking and screaming into the 20th century, but not necessarily the 21st). Waitresses put it on my checks, usually with a smiley face and/or heart drawn on the check as well. In one case, I got the Jesus fish on my check.
I find this to be unprofessional, and somewhat rude. Yeah, these women (and I don’t believe that I’ve ever heard a man use the expression) undoubtedly mean well, but I’m not a believer, and if I did believe I’d probably choose something other than Christianity. However, in this area, if you’re white, people automatically assume that you’re a Protestant, and usually a member of an evangelical fundamentalist church. If you’re Hispanic, it’s assumed that you’re Catholic. Black? Oh, either you’re Christian or Muslim. Asian? You’re a heathen, unless you have accepted Jesus into your heart (no joke, there’s plenty of Baptist churches around here that have a large Asian congregation).
This expression might be the tipping point when I decide whether or not to continue patronizing a business or service. If it’s the ONLY point that I disagree with, then I’ll probably continue shopping or getting my doctoring or whatever done there. However, if there’s another point or points that I dislike about the business, it might make the difference.
I usually don’t say anything about it, probably I should speak up more often. Oh, and if I see a Jesus fish on a place’s sign or advertisement, I generally won’t even try that place. Clearly, they don’t want me as a customer.
The emails come from an insurance agency and the two agents we work with both have their cubeyard pics in their signature. Neither look really overjoyed about the picture either. It makes me think that these were not by choice.
Thanks. To me, that is the purpose of “professionalism”. To create a pleasant environment where everyone can interact for the main purpose of getting work done.
What I specifically said was “That person is potential a judgmental Christian and I sure the heck had better watch what I say around them.” Being a judgmental Christian is far from the worst thing I could think about a coworker, but that’s a different subject.
But I do stand behind what I said. In my experience, people who are religious enough to bring their religion into a neutral area like the workplace are also religious enough to cause problems with people who don’t share their beliefs. Most Christians (or any people of faith) aren’t like that. But there are some who are, and I do feel like I have to really tiptoe around them.
That said, a lot of people on this thread have mentioned the phrase can be a cultural thing. In that case, sure, I still think it’s unprofessional, but I probably wouldn’t get overly jittery about it in that scenario.
(bolding by me)
I do not wish to argue with you Athena, but I want to ask you about this attitude. I am aware that there are judgmental people around, whether Christian, religious or neutral, but I often wonder why people (here at SDMB especially) assume that there is a judgmental, assholish component to merely being Christian.
I ask this sincerely, since it troubles me a bit. I believe in God, go to Mass on the regular, pray, and try to live a good life. This includes caring for others and trying to behave as Christ taught. For this I am assumed to be a judgmental asshole. That’s what I don’t understand.
And to answer the question of the OP, while I think it may perhaps not be strictly professional, I am thankful always to read that someone wishes me well. If I’m wished a blessed day, I assume the person is sincere.
Well, poo. I didn’t see that you’d posted.
Yup. I’d have the same issue with a business email that ended “Have a sexy day!”
Why would your company force you to do that, though? Is there any practical reason for it?
Hey! I’m a caucasian atheist liberal from the northern US! Does that make me, like, prom queen or class president something?