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Comment by unsupp0rted | Hacker News Reader

I have a client like this. Any 3-sentence email is too long for him to write or read. People ask him "Option A or Option B?" questions and he replies "yes", resulting in 3 more back-and-forth emails to clear up confusion. It's always the other party's fault for being confusing.

I can totally see him approving an $80k deal with a thumb's up then turning into a lawyer when held to it.

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I’m on my HOA board and this describes every single vendor we work with. Absolutely infuriating, and I don’t understand how they graduated high school.

I don't understand how they graduated high school and they don't understand how I don't own a business that makes 7 figures, since it's so easy for them to do.

Life is confusing to me, pretty much every day.

It IS pretty easy, if you: pay no deep attention to anything, and delegate all tasks, even if to hacks or fucking idiots.

Heres the trick they use:

Dont pay anything until the very last minute and spend like there's no tomorrow, then when the credit eventually runs out and the tax man is knocking, declare bankruptcy and feign ignorance claiming for the rest of your life that the system was out to get you and youre just a victim of corruption.

I emailed a YouTuber about a product and their answer was so terse/unprofessional.

The bar is low for be successful businesses . Lots of makeup on a pig. Ultimately, just do it.

I think what you should do is offer option A only, and make it the one that is preferable to you. Buyers get what they deserve in the end.

> People ask him "Option A or Option B?" questions and he replies "yes"

He's probably just dragging his feet.

It's silly stuff like "Bill said he's free Wednesday or Thursday: which slot works for you?"

Yes.

Stop being so accommodating. Some clients are not worth the trouble.

There are a lot more pluses than minuses.

The pluses aren’t interesting enough for me tell stories about on HN, so you’re getting a skewed image.

Maybe assume he's reading it as "Wednesday? Thursday?" "Yes". Meaning, he's saying yes to the latter of the two.

Ha, I would typically assume the former. Usually people lead with the strongest/most desirable option. The remainder are all technically available.

Speaking from experience with the functionally illiterate: they read this as "Wednesday....work for you?"

This is absolutely my experience as well. I used to encounter this regularly in a professional context and ended up just replying with a confirmation that "option A" was what he'd agreed to. I was never mistaken.

And it's OUR fault these people are allowed to continue existing unimpeded in society.

Just so we're all on the same page.

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