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  • #1

    I need a new answer

    Seriously, I'm asking for suggestions that won't offend midwesterners.

    First, on Tuesday I was berated for saying I was ok. "Just OK??" he challenged me. That ended badly.

    Some lady asked today "How are you?" and I said "OK" as I was bending down to move a cord on the floor. She said the polite "That's good to hear" but there was the barest hint of displeasure at how I answered her. She was not sucky at all, but I can tell she was a bit offended.
    I managed to be extra-friendly and save myself from a survey complaint, though.

    If I'm good I say so, but so often when asked that question I've just been annoyed by a coworker or thrown on a messy workstation and am literally scrambling to deal with it. I'm distracted by that and honestly, I don't tell people what they wanna hear. I won't say anything inappropriately honest, but I'm not gonna be like the Target lady on SNL, unless I am in that mood. So what can I say that's neutral but friendly enough for Minnesota Nice? (don't even live in MN but it bleeds into WI)
    "Is it hot in here to you? It's very warm, isn't it?"--Nero, probably
    Tags: None
  • #2
    With the warning that I am a real smart ass.

    "I'm still on the green side of the grass."
    "Upright and taking nourishment"
    "The cardiologist says I'll live."
    "Well, I made it to work."

    And with a select few of my fellow airport customer service workers,
    "I'm here and nobody is dead yet."
    Meeeeoooow.....
    Still missing you, Plaid

    Comment

    • #3
      I would recommend switching to "Fine." I think some people take ok to mean barely above awful. Fine has become so generic it might work.

      Comment

      • #4
        I'm in the northeast, and even saying "fine" can result in a "Just fine?". That usually results in a quick glance at their face (since I'm right smack in the middle of scanning their stuff), and saying "Just busy". Most of the time the SC will back off. Sometimes that results in comments about how I sounded upset, or didn't sound very happy, etc. To which I plaster on a puzzled expression and say, "No? Just busy". That is usually the end of it.

        It's weird, most of the time I am good at seeming pleasant, even if I'm not smiling. I'm not smiling because I am concentrating on work. But I also seem to have a resting bitch faces so...*shrugs*
        A lion however, will only devour your corpse, whereas an SC is not sated until they have destroyed your soul. (Quote per infinitemonkies)

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        • #5
          Keep in mind that a lot of this is THEIR attitude, not yours. Someone who responds in the way these people did, is looking for a reason to be offended. You just happened to be their victim. You could have said that you feel "fantastic," and they would have found something wrong with it -- e.g., either claiming that you're "too happy" ("FL must be on drugs or something!"), or faking it (duh -- pretending to be happy is part of the job), etc.
          "For a musician, the SNES sound engine is like using Crayola Crayons. Nobuo Uematsu used Crayola Crayons to paint the Sistine Chapel." - Jeremy Jahns (re: "Dancing Mad")
          "The difference between an amateur and a master is that the master has failed way more times." - JoCat
          "Thinking is difficult, therefore let the herd pronounce judgment!" ~ Carl Jung
          "There's burning bridges, and then there's the lake just to fill it with gasoline." - Wiccy, reddit
          "Retail is a cruel master, and could very well be the most educational time of many people's lives, in its own twisted way." - me
          "Love keeps her in the air when she oughta fall down...tell you she's hurtin' 'fore she keens...makes her a home." - Capt. Malcolm Reynolds, "Serenity" (2005)
          Acts of Gord – Read it, Learn it, Love it!
          "Our psychic powers only work if the customer has a mind to read." - me

          Comment

          • #6
            I usually answer with "hanging in there," "I'm here," or "I crawled out of bed this morning." And if someone takes offense to one of those, I have a slew of ready made "reasons" for why my day isn't all sunshine and rainbows. Some are true, some are not. But the ol' standby of I was on call last night and didn't get any sleep works pretty well.
            I am no longer of capable of the emotion you humans call “compassion”. Though I can feign it in exchange for an hourly wage. (Gravekeeper)

            Comment

            • #7
              Quoth EricKei View Post
              Keep in mind that a lot of this is THEIR attitude, not yours. Someone who responds in the way these people did, is looking for a reason to be offended. You just happened to be their victim. You could have said that you feel "fantastic," and they would have found something wrong with it -- e.g., either claiming that you're "too happy" ("FL must be on drugs or something!"), or faking it (duh -- pretending to be happy is part of the job), etc.
              I could blow it off if it was an occasional thing, but I run into this frequently. I think it's just the culture around here. Anything outside of My life is just perfect; thank you for asking and thus reminding me. You are such a hero for making me, the cashier in the lowly position, remember how blessed I am! is actually offensive to people. And it's bizarre how they ask like, "Oh, how are YOU??" all super-cheerful, like I'm a best friend they haven't seen recently, when I've never seen them before. It throws me off and that's why "ok" comes out before I realize what I've said.

              My friend describes the people here as fiercely contented. My phrase for that is willfully insulated.
              Last edited by Food Lady; 09-19-2015, 03:44 PM.
              "Is it hot in here to you? It's very warm, isn't it?"--Nero, probably

              Comment

              • #8
                Well, I'm not from the midwest, but I always respond with "I'm good, how're you?" Usually they say something like pretty good, alright, etc, and we just move on. Honestly, half the time when I reply and ask the person how they are, they don't even hear me. So the dialog goes like this "Hi, how are you? I'm good, how're you? I'll take one yard." It doesn't usually phase me, it's just so common. No one around here expects a real answer.

                Am I always good? No, of course not. I just say it, like I say thank you, or have a good day. But again, I don't find people to be as intensely pushy as they are were you live. Since so very many people pester you about this, have you noticed what other cashiers say? Do customers bother them as much as they do you? Maybe try one phrase for a day/week, and another then next day/week, and compare reactions. You might find that no reply is the "right" answer to stop this behavior.
                Replace anger management with stupidity management.

                Comment

                • #9
                  I completely sympathize with you. I've had people straight up drill me with stuff like asking if I'm mad, am I just okay, and that I need to smile. I'm sorry I can't be Litle Mary Sunshine all the time. As a character on one of my favorite TV shows once said, "Little Mary Sunshine died. I'm Little Mary Go-Fuck-Yourself." ETA: To answer your query in the OP, I usually will answer with 'just fine' or 'not bad' or some iteration of that.
                  "And though she be but little, she is FIERCE!"--Shakespeare

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                  • #10
                    "Do you want the truth or a pleasant lie?"

                    That usually shuts them up, but if it doesn't and they pick an option, give them whichever one they wanted.
                    Drive it like it's a county car.

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                    • #11
                      Quoth notalwaysright View Post
                      Well, I'm not from the midwest, but I always respond with "I'm good, how're you?"
                      Yup, I'd go with this if I were you. It shows positivity as well as concern for the asker. If they can't deal with this one, then I don't what to tell you!

                      Comment

                      • #12
                        Quoth Food Lady View Post
                        Seriously, I'm asking for suggestions that won't offend midwesterners.
                        well before I moved, I always found "can't complain"(followed up with "what can I assist you with?" or similar*) to be accepted. And it's technically honest, they usually take it as "everything's just peachy"and not "if I complain I'll get in trouble/it won't do any good."


                        *if you ask a question right away it sometimes distracts them, and puts you back in control of the conversation.
                        Last edited by BlaqueKatt; 09-19-2015, 09:46 PM.
                        Honestly.... the image of that in my head made me go "AWESOME!"..... and then I remembered I am terribly strange.-Red dazes

                        Comment

                        • #13
                          One of my go-to responses was "Vital signs are good," sometimes with a finger on my neck as if checking my pulse.

                          Another one, usually if they ask "How's it going," was "It goes."
                          PWNADE(TM) - Serve up a glass today! | PWNZER - An act of pwnage so awesome, it's like the victim got hit by a tank.

                          There are only Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse because I choose to walk!

                          Comment

                          • #14
                            Quoth BlaqueKatt View Post
                            well before I moved, I always found "can't complain"(followed up with "what can I assist you with?" or similar*) to be accepted. And it's technically honest, they usually take it as "everything's just peachy"and not "if I complain I'll get in trouble/it won't do any good."


                            *if you ask a question right away it sometimes distracts them, and puts you back in control of the conversation.
                            Asking that question was what ticked the guy off the last time. But he's a jerk, as in he jerks people around--the true sense of the word.
                            "Is it hot in here to you? It's very warm, isn't it?"--Nero, probably

                            Comment

                            • #15
                              *brzzt* "WORKER UNIT THREE-FIVE-SEVEN-ALPHA IS NOT PERMITTED TO HAVE FEELINGS." *vvvt* "WE HAVE A LOVELY SALE ON EGGS TO-DAY. WOULD YOU LIKE SOME?"
                              "For a musician, the SNES sound engine is like using Crayola Crayons. Nobuo Uematsu used Crayola Crayons to paint the Sistine Chapel." - Jeremy Jahns (re: "Dancing Mad")
                              "The difference between an amateur and a master is that the master has failed way more times." - JoCat
                              "Thinking is difficult, therefore let the herd pronounce judgment!" ~ Carl Jung
                              "There's burning bridges, and then there's the lake just to fill it with gasoline." - Wiccy, reddit
                              "Retail is a cruel master, and could very well be the most educational time of many people's lives, in its own twisted way." - me
                              "Love keeps her in the air when she oughta fall down...tell you she's hurtin' 'fore she keens...makes her a home." - Capt. Malcolm Reynolds, "Serenity" (2005)
                              Acts of Gord – Read it, Learn it, Love it!
                              "Our psychic powers only work if the customer has a mind to read." - me

                              Comment

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