Since we had our discussion about wordiness, I've been dissecting every work email I write, and I have to say, I still think the wordiness is sometimes necessary or expected. I was looking at stuff online and I came across this blog? article? I actually don't know how to describe it -- Weird!
Anyway, in the blarticle the author is saying that sometimes our wordiness is necessary. She was trying to figure out why she feels the need to start an email with "I am writing to tell you that.... commas are on sale." She goes on to say that these "empty phrases" act as buffers and carry some emotional weight. For example, you wouldn't just walk up to a friend and say "commas are on sale" - this could seem like an abrupt command. You would walk up to a friend and say "I just wanted to let you know that commas are on sale," and now it seems like you are offering helpful information.
So while I understand that some of the words I use in my email correspondence are superfluous, I will no longer beat myself up about how terrible I think it sounds to say "You did a terrible job." Obviously, "I just wanted to let you know that you did a terrible job" is SO much better.
Lol! I am not sure that "I just wanted to let you know" is a strong enough buffer when you tell someone they did a terrible job. However, I agree that these needless words and phrases do carry emotional weight and protection. I guess it really depends on the context. If you need to soften a blow, by all means, soften. If you just need to give directions or alerts, I say be direct. I personally would go up to someone and say, "commas are on sale" but I don't know how to properly set a table for dinner, so maybe I'm not the best benchmark. ;)
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