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Comment by plaguepilled | Hacker News Reader

As someone who has worked a few service jobs: oh god please don't start a conversation with me if I'm on my lonesome. This advice needs a huge sticker that says 'mileage may vary'.

Not everyone wants the silence to be punctuated with smalltalk.

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The author's point of view seems to me quite condescending. Like being the janitor is considered less (and that, inevitably, everybody sees the janitor that way), so the author is trying to flip that view around (because he can, he is "not less").

Needless to say that being polite is out of the question here, and that I am sure that the author's intentions are not what I just commented, but I can't help to read it that way.

I would agree that "please" and "thank you" can take you far, however you don't just have to address them to the janitor, it's for everybody.

> Like being the janitor is considered less

This is implied to be a bad thing... but is it really that important? My work is still work even when others don't validate me for it.

The person doing the cleaning on our office floor always wears very large and conspicuous probably noise canceling headphones, while working. Guessing she has had one too many person trying to make awkward conversation while she was just trying to get the coffee cups in the wash as quickly as possible.

Headphones are just a social signal of "Do Not Disturb". Or maybe just listening to music. Things have different meanings in different contexts.

I really wish those flippable red/green autism-awareness bracelets ("Speak to me"/"Please don't speak to me") had become ubiquitous already.

Note: Apparently they are also called "mood bands".

Also, the first shop I found [0] has stopped all international shipping due to Brexit.

I'm sure there's some sort of joke or lesson here.

[0] https://www.sensorydirect.com/mood-bands-pack-of-3

Same! Sadly I'm not sure they ever will be...

I think the best bet is to just acknowledge, no need to smalltalk. Just smile and say "good morning" or even just nod at them when you run by, no matter who that is, CEO or the janitor. That will be enough for a people yearning to get noticed to feel noticed, but won't unnerve the occasional person who wants to be left alone.

I agree with this comment. YMMV. I tend to just naturally start up conversations with service folks, and at least half the time they appear to be annoyed.

This was going to be my first question!

Full AI likes to be interrupted by SmallTalk programmers making buggy software to fix real life. Thank you, GBY.

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