The Power of Smiley Faces

Ever write a wiseass IM or e-mail in good nature to a co-worker or friend and get that awkward waiting period for the response?

You know exactly what I'm talking about.

If it's an IM, you stare at the little typing/pencil icon in the IM window to see if the other person is responding. Of course, they stop typing like 10 times and you wonder how they're taking what you wrote.

If it's an email, you usually hit refresh or Send/Receive mail 100 times.

Either way, there is a simple reason why this happens, and it's all tied to the two keys that are missing: The colon and the closing parenthesis.

I'm telling you, adding a smiley face to an IM or email gives you the ability to be 100 times more obnoxious. It's a thing of beauty.

Consider the following exchange:

Bill: Hey Lisa.
Lisa: Hey Bill! Thanks again for dinner last night. I had fun.
Bill: Me too. Of course, it would have been more fun if we got drunk and slept together.
Lisa: Excuse me?

Now consider the same exchange with the Smiley:

Bill: Hey Lisa.
Lisa: Hey Bill! Thanks again for dinner last night. I had fun.
Bill: Me too. Of course, it would have been more fun if we got drunk and slept together. :)
Lisa: Haha. Very funny.
Bill: What, you think I'm kidding? :)
Lisa: :)

Or consider the following work e-mail exchange:

The Boss: Hey Ron, I just wanted to let you know that corporate is coming in tomorrow and expecting an update on the Q2 Forecast. Can you have that ready by 10 a.m.?

Ron: Sure I can, so long as corporate has an update on why I'm not getting a bonus.

Now, with the Smiley:


The Boss: Hey Ron, I just wanted to let you know that corporate is coming in tomorrow and expecting an update on the Q2 Forecast. Can you have that ready by 10 a.m.?

Ron: Sure I can, so long as corporate has an update on why I'm not getting a bonus. :)

The Boss: Would a company pen be acceptable instead? :)

Ron: Only if you let me shove it up corporate's ass. :)

The Boss: Need an extra hand? :)


Morale of the story, you ask?

Next time you feel like pushing the proverbial envelope in an IM or email, try adding a smiley face. You'll be amazed at what you can say and pull off.

And if you don't want to, then go fuck yourself!

Sorry, let's try that again ...

And if you don't want to, then go fuck yourself! :)