I’m with you but it’s a generational thing. Are you a millennial?

in response to plans?

chill.

in response to something like a political opinion?

highly sarcastic.

Whether a thumbs-up emoji is a good response really depends on the situation.

If it’s a quick ‘yes’ or ‘okay’ to a simple question, it’s fine. But if someone’s asking for your opinion or needs more details, it can seem like you’re not putting in much effort.

Also, how well you know the person matters a lot. You might use it with a close friend. In contrast someone you don’t know well, it can be considered rude.

👍

I used to but then at work everyone always uses the thumbs up on slack. So I got used to it. Nowadays it depends on the context of the convo

🆗

Just make sure you don’t use it, or fail to clarify and confirm the meaning of its use, in a business setting or you could be in some trouble.

Initially I did yeah, but eventually learned that different people use it differently. So good practice to never assume sarcasm through emojis unless you know the person well

👎

👍

It depends on the context and the person for me.

You see it as dismissive. Low effort reply, like they couldn’t be bothered. It’s not inviting continued conversation so you see it as someone telling you to stop talking to them.

If I were to guess. In your eyes. They might as well have replied with “cool story bro”.

Which is now forever a sarcastic term and no one regardless of what you say, will believe that you actually found their story cool.

Just like a curt “yes” or even “yes sir” can be seen as somewhat rude in some contexts, so to can its emoji equivalent.

I had this discussion with my wife a few weeks ago. She did that to a work colleague who took offense to it. I explained that that’s because her colleague is about 8 years younger than us.

Basically, if the recipient is 35 and under, it’s offensive. If they’re 40 and older, it’s not. Anywhere in between, look for context.

In a professional setting, it’s been a normalised acknowledgement, but socially I try to avoid it. Depending on the generation it can be taken the wrong way.