"Yourselves"

[Kermit power]

Where the hell do people get this word from???

I've been on 3 different conference calls today with people insisting on referring to clients as "yourselves" rather than "you", along the lines of "this is one of the benefits that our system can offer to yourselves". Why wouldn't they just say "this is one of the benefits that our system can offer you".

I'm not 100% sure whether it is or isn't actually grammatically acceptable? All I know is it makes me cringe, and I don't understand why people do it.

[Dupont666]

Kermit power said:

Where the hell do people get this word from???

I've been on 3 different conference calls today with people insisting on referring to clients as "yourselves" rather than "you", along the lines of "this is one of the benefits that our system can offer to yourselves". Why wouldn't they just say "this is one of the benefits that our system can offer you".

I'm not 100% sure whether it is or isn't actually grammatically acceptable? All I know is it makes me cringe, and I don't understand why people do it.

Maybe there is more than one client on the line?

[CypherP]

Kermit power said:

Where the hell do people get this word from???

I've been on 3 different conference calls today with people insisting on referring to clients as "yourselves" rather than "you", along the lines of "this is one of the benefits that our system can offer to yourselves". Why wouldn't they just say "this is one of the benefits that our system can offer you".

I'm not 100% sure whether it is or isn't actually grammatically acceptable? All I know is it makes me cringe, and I don't understand why people do it.

I have to agree. Quite a few people in our Sales team refer to the customer on the phone as "yourself", rather than "you", and I must admit that it gets on my nerves.

Not half as much as the girl who has been here for 3 years and when taking software licensing calls and asking for an auth code, refers to a alphanumeric code as being "20 long". 20 what!?? There's a reason why the word 'digit' was created.

Most of the time, with regards to the whole "yourselves" thing, I think people just change words slightly to make it sound a little more personal and also like they can make themselves sound slightly more professional by doing so. I've never understood why people don't just say "you" as the customer. Idiots.

[10 Pence Short]

There are soome tetchy people on here today. Take a good look at yourselves.

[otolith]

http://www.channelflip.com/2009/03/26/david-mitche...

[Deva Link]

Do these people also say "tunafish" by any chance?

[CypherP]

10 Pence Short said:

There are soome tetchy people on here today. Take a good look at yourselves.

Ok, yes, there are some circumstances that deem it appropriate to use. But I'm pretty sure I know what Kermit Power is talking about though. Its as if these people substitute every use of the word "you" with "yourselves", not just when it would sound correct and fit appropriately into that part of the conversation.

[Dupont666]

Kermit power said:

Where the hell do people get this word from???

I've been on 3 different conference calls today with people insisting on referring to clients as "yourselves" rather than "you", along the lines of "this is one of the benefits that our system can offer to yourselves". Why wouldn't they just say "this is one of the benefits that our system can offer you".

I'm not 100% sure whether it is or isn't actually grammatically acceptable? All I know is it makes me cringe, and I don't understand why people do it.

You should be thinking outside of the box on this blue water issue, its a no brainer and you get the idea as to why they think like that at the end of the day, its a pro active way as to include all.

Surely going forward you could leverage this with management, take it off line with them and touch base later rather than cringe during the meeting, especially when they are trying to go forward on the back of this conference call to decide on the benefits of your systems to the clients?

Maybe?

It was hard to force myself to write that

[davido140]

CypherP said:

refers to a alphanumeric code as being "20 long". 20 what!?? There's a reason why the word 'digit' was created.

Technically (if its alphanumeric) it's twenty characters long, a digit is a number, (or a finger, depending on context!)

Edited by davido140 on Monday 23 November 15:30

[Soovy]

One of my top p155 boilers.

Right up there with "come and see us, in branch"


Argh!

[mouseymousey]

CypherP said:

Not half as much as the girl who has been here for 3 years and when taking software licensing calls and asking for an auth code, refers to a alphanumeric code as being "20 long". 20 what!?? There's a reason why the word 'digit' was created.

Alphanumeric you say? Then she should use the word 'characters' rather than 'digits' shouldn't she?


ETA: Damn, too late!

Edited by mouseymousey on Monday 23 November 15:32

[davido140]

mouseymousey said:

CypherP said:

Not half as much as the girl who has been here for 3 years and when taking software licensing calls and asking for an auth code, refers to a alphanumeric code as being "20 long". 20 what!?? There's a reason why the word 'digit' was created.

Alphanumeric you say? Then she should use the word 'characters' rather than 'digits' shouldn't she?


ETA: Damn, too late!

Edited by mouseymousey on Monday 23 November 15:32

It was only a couple of minutes, you can share the smugness with me if you like!

[Rude-boy]

This is a matter I think you lot need to deal with yourselves.

[CypherP]

davido140 said:

mouseymousey said:

CypherP said:

Not half as much as the girl who has been here for 3 years and when taking software licensing calls and asking for an auth code, refers to a alphanumeric code as being "20 long". 20 what!?? There's a reason why the word 'digit' was created.

Alphanumeric you say? Then she should use the word 'characters' rather than 'digits' shouldn't she?


ETA: Damn, too late!

Edited by mouseymousey on Monday 23 November 15:32

It was only a couple of minutes, you can share the smugness with me if you like!

Ok yes, quite right, but you get my point. I think I just take too much notice of the things other people are doing/saying as well as my own. Oh well, thankfully I won't be here too much longer.

[Zod]

It's just the same with "myself", as in "My wife and myself".

[Zod]

Dupont666 said:

Kermit power said:

Where the hell do people get this word from???

I've been on 3 different conference calls today with people insisting on referring to clients as "yourselves" rather than "you", along the lines of "this is one of the benefits that our system can offer to yourselves". Why wouldn't they just say "this is one of the benefits that our system can offer you".

I'm not 100% sure whether it is or isn't actually grammatically acceptable? All I know is it makes me cringe, and I don't understand why people do it.

Maybe there is more than one client on the line?

So? The pronoun, "you", in English can be singular or plural.

[Bill]

Kermit power said:

All I know is it makes me cringe, and I don't understand why people do it.

Because they're illiterate morons who think it makes them sound intelligent.

[Kermit power]

Dupont666 said:

Kermit power said:

Where the hell do people get this word from???

I've been on 3 different conference calls today with people insisting on referring to clients as "yourselves" rather than "you", along the lines of "this is one of the benefits that our system can offer to yourselves". Why wouldn't they just say "this is one of the benefits that our system can offer you".

I'm not 100% sure whether it is or isn't actually grammatically acceptable? All I know is it makes me cringe, and I don't understand why people do it.

Maybe there is more than one client on the line?

In this particular instance, he was using "yourselves" to refer to a single company with multiple employees, only one of whom was on the conference call. It would, however, only have been marginally better if he'd said "yourself" instead of you.

[Kermit power]

10 Pence Short said:

There are soome tetchy people on here today. Take a good look at yourselves.

The word is, of course, perfectly acceptable in its correct usage. Unlike the word "soome".

[Balmoral Green]

Zod said:

It's just the same with "myself", as in "My wife and myself".

Out of me, myself and I, I would probably go with one of the other two