Thank You...No Problem!
First off, a heartfelt "thank you" to Amy Kannel of the Lavender *Sparkles* weblog for turning me on to our topic today. Amy posted an entry to the Nashville is Talking weblog portal last weekend that sparked my (and hopefully your) immediate interest; the subject matter concerns the impact different ways of responding to "thank you" have on people.
Imagine that a warehouse clerk at Sears hustles and bustles a heavy piece of exercise equipment you just purchased out to your waiting vehicle in the store parking lot. "Thank you so much!" you say to the young man. "No problem," he replies.
As you drive off, your mind sets to turning. "What was the potential problem? That I indirectly asked this employee for assistance in helping me to lug this awkward, bulky item to my vehicle? That I momentarily pierced the bubble of this young man's thoughts as he stood shuffling his feet with his hands stuffed in his jeans pockets in the middle of a dusty, lonely warehouse? What?"
The response of 'No problem' to 'Thank you,' friends, is what is known as a non sequitur.
The Wikipedia editors have an interesting perspective on 'no problem':
[No problem] is typically used to mean "I've taken care of it" or in place of "You're welcome," in response to "Thank you" (i.e. "No thanks are necessary; my effort was no problem for me"). It has no real meaning outside of the context in which it is used.
A phrase or idiom dictionary translation of "no problem" might read "I'll take care of it" or "there's nothing to worry about." However, it effectively means "I'm not going to give you any other assurances," and thus ends a conversation about whatever risk is about to be incurred. Some think it means roughly the same thing as "shut up."
Jewish World Review's Bob Greene hits on some extremely salient points in his piece "And now even saying "thank you" creates a problem" (great article! please read it), some of which I addressed in my essay "You Guys":
Of course, you can always hit the trifecta. You're in a ticket line at the airport. You're waiting for someone behind the counter to acknowledge that you're alive.
Finally the person says:
"You guys need to move down to the next counter."
Out of habit—or fear of offending—you say to the airline employee:
"Thank you."
And the employee, without looking up or making eye contact with you, says, as if on cue:
"No problem."
I'm particularly struck by Greene's reference to the atrocious "you need to" construction. Ack, how this bothers me. You can bet I'll be authoring a post on this subject in the near future.
Here's another illogical and (in my opinion) inappropriate response to 'Thank you' that I would like to run up the proverbial flagpole: Sure. Check out the following fictional exchange:
Marge in Accounting: Henry, thank you so much for fixing my computer. I don't know what I'd do without you!
Henry in IT: Sure.
Again, let's analyze the 'sure' response for a moment. Could Marge in Accounting conceivably be left wondering if Henry, with his 'sure' response, doubts her sincerity of gratitude? Exactly what is Henry 'sure' (or 'certain,' to substitute a synonym) of, anyhow? That Marge believes that Henry actually fixed her computer? What?
Readers, I hereby commit that, one day at a time, I shall do my best to avoid responding to expressions of gratitude with inappropriate and potentially insulting non-sequiturs such as 'no problem' or 'sure.'
Truly, working in the information technology field is, in practice, much like working in retail. Accordingly, I find the principles contained in Dave's "So You're Getting Started In Retail" Page to be relevant to our discussion. Viz.:
Correct responses to "Thank you" include:
* "You're welcome."
* "My pleasure."
* "Glad to help you."
* "Thank you."The response "No problem" is never correct.
I myself use "You're welcome," "My pleasure," "I'm grateful to have been of service," and "You're very welcome" most often. What do you use?
Enjoy your day.
UPDATE: Last night Sue and I went out to to dinner with a couple friends at PF Changs in downtown Nashville. Interestingly, every single staff member with whom we interacted responded to our "Thank yous" with "No problem." Our server put a fascinating twist on the situation by responding to one of my "Thank yous" with "It's all good." Otherwise, the service and food were wonderful as always, and our server deserved every bit of his 20 percent tip.
Don wrote:
Wait, wait, wait…you question what “No problem” means, but how about the phrase “You’re welcome”? You’re welcome to what? Come over to my house tomorrow night? You’re welcome in my magnificent presence? I have no problem with “No problem” and use it without reservations. I see these phrases to be simple pleasantries…it no longer really matters what they mean and I don’t think there’s really a definite level of politeness to them.
Posted on 15-Sep-06 at 11:51 am | Permalink
brittney wrote:
Wow, Don, took the words right out of my mouth. Pleasantries evolve. “You’re welcome” has lost all meaning (to me), except an acknowlegment of thanks. It can easily be substituted with no problem” or sure thing” or no sweat.” It’s all in the intent and delivery.
Getting annoyed by someone not properly acknowleding your thanks seems like energy wasted.
Posted on 15-Sep-06 at 12:03 pm | Permalink
Tim W. wrote:
The OED defines welcome as “one whose coming is pleasing or desirable; an acceptable person or thing,” and you’re welcome as “a polite formula used in response to an expression of thanks.”
This is all my own opinion, naturally. When I say “You’re welcome” I mean by that “Your coming into my presence was a pleasure to me, and whatever help I was able to offer you was equally pleasurable.”
The only way I can square “No problem” logically is from what Wikipedia said (”The effort I expended assisting you was no problem for me”). This construction, to me anyhow, doesn’t carry with it the same polite cachet as “You’re welcome.” To each: his or her own.
Believe it or not, I try to do nice things for people with no thought of return. A mentor of mine once taught me, “Be sure never to hold a door for someone for the ‘thank you.’”
Tim
Posted on 15-Sep-06 at 12:14 pm | Permalink
Mac wrote:
I’m glad to see what others think of “no problem.” I’ve always used it to mean, “it was no problem for me.” In other words, “don’t mention it, I’m glad to help.”
I started questioning my use when I lived in the same house with a Chinese woman learning English. She got stuck on “no problem” for a few weeks…
Posted on 15-Sep-06 at 1:37 pm | Permalink
Chad wrote:
Every time I hear a “Thank you” followed by a “No problem”, I cringe. Using “no problem” while providing customer service is unprofessional and, consequently, discourteous.
I KNOW it’s no problem for you to get me another Coke - you’re getting paid to do it! It’s my job to pay for services rendered, tip as appropriate, and treat my service providers with respect. It’s your job to provide those services with a friendly smile, eye contact, and professional courtesy.
Posted on 15-Sep-06 at 2:36 pm | Permalink
Bill wrote:
Unprofessional, not proper. I agree with that, but I think the speaker cures the faux pas by adding “dude” to the phrase.
Posted on 16-Sep-06 at 11:47 am | Permalink
Don wrote:
Chad, going by your logic, why bother to thank someone for a task they are being paid to do anyway? Do they thank you for being paid? And if they did, would you say “you’re welcome” or “no problem”?
And Tim, I think you’ve created a new lesson: never say “thank you” for the “you’re welcome”…or, in this case, the “no problem”.
Posted on 16-Sep-06 at 11:08 pm | Permalink
Rick wrote:
“No problem” simply means, “Helping you caused me no inconvenience”. In exactly the way that saying “thank you” to a paid service provider gracefully acknowledges him as a human being and not just a servant, “no problem” reassures the grateful person that he did not excessively burden the service provider. That the request for and provision of help was ordinary is immaterial; the exchange of polite forms is part of a system which promotes cooperation and good rapport. It’s how we continuously affirm our civilized state.
“No problem” is deemed improper only because it is still considered informal. Conversely, “you’re welcome” is deemed proper only because it IS formal; its literal meaning is of no importance. But in some cases, informality can actually enhance the rapport this exchange is meant to generate. Used judiciously, I think “no problem” is a welcome alternative response.
To say “Thank you so much!” when a mere “thank you” was all that was expected implies that you felt an extraordinary effort had been made on your behalf. Perhaps a “No problem!” response is meant to acknowledge that implication.
Posted on 19-Sep-06 at 3:18 am | Permalink
Tim W. wrote:
“No problem” simply means, “Helping you caused me no inconvenience”.
Exactly, Rick. If I were to give my friend a birthday present, he were to say, “Thanks, Tim!” and I were to reply, “No problem!” is the message I want to transmit to my friend, however implicitly, “Giving you this present caused me no inconvenience”?
Posted on 19-Sep-06 at 5:56 am | Permalink
Mother Tongue Annoyances » The I Need/You Need Culture wrote:
[…] Hello. Ever since I read Bob Greene’s dusty old May 1999 column “And now even saying ‘thank you’ creates a problem” (which I referenced in my September 15, 2006 post “Thank You…No Problem!”) I’ve had it stuck in my craw to write this essay on what I’m calling our I Need/You Need culture in America. […]
Posted on 04-Oct-06 at 11:00 am | Permalink