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February 7, 2026
The hill I will die on: Britons love saying thank you – I think we should ban the phrase
Really, what is the point of this endless conversational back and forth? Step out of the loop, and change your life
TL;DR
- The author argues that the excessive use of "thank you" in British culture has rendered the phrase meaningless.
- Different types of "thank yous" are described, including passive-aggressive, presumptuous, and dismissive forms.
- The author contrasts British "thank you" culture with their experience in India, where gratitude is shown differently.
- Overuse of "thank you" emails contributes to carbon emissions, with a potential to save significant amounts of carbon by reducing them.
- The author proposes that saying "nothing at all" in certain situations could be more genuine than a "thank you" that has lost its meaning.
- The author reflects on their own automatic "thank you" reflexes, even towards inanimate objects like self-checkout machines and ATMs.
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