Don't get me wrong. I'm not suggesting that we should stop caring about one another, but isn't "How are you?" always followed by "fine" or just "good"?
How about just saying, "Hello, I hope you've been well." I feel this conveys my interest in one's well-being without having to ask a question that the person being greeted may not want to answer honestly.
Does anyone answer with anything other than "fine"? Just to change the pace and make people around me more attentive, when I'm asked, my reply is "Just fair, thanks, and I hope you've been well."
Then if the person I'm greeting wants to tell me about the accident s/he had or about the argument he had with his spouse, okay, I'm ready to listen. But if we're always going to answer with "fine," then I don't see the point and I propose we change our standard greeting to, "Hello, I hope you've been well."
What do you think? Thanks in advance for your answers ... and have a good one.
2007-02-11
00:24:58
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22 answers
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asked by
Anonymous
in
Etiquette