How to politely request to be called by first name instead of Mr. Surname?












4














Let's say that somebody from a partner firm with whom I've never spoken before starts an email to me with "Dear Mr. Rossi,".



When a reply to her, I think I will then have to start with "Dear Ms. Her-Surname," to not sound disrepectful. But I would like to make this email conversation less formal next time.



Is there any better alternative to the sentence below?




Dear Ms. Her-Surname,



First of all, feel free to call me
Ivo. Regarding your...







formality email politeness







share|improve this question




















  • 4




    Your suggestion looks good to me!
    – psmears
    Feb 18 '11 at 15:52










  • "My name is Mister Surname!" :)
    – zetetic
    Feb 18 '11 at 21:08
















4














Let's say that somebody from a partner firm with whom I've never spoken before starts an email to me with "Dear Mr. Rossi,".



When a reply to her, I think I will then have to start with "Dear Ms. Her-Surname," to not sound disrepectful. But I would like to make this email conversation less formal next time.



Is there any better alternative to the sentence below?




Dear Ms. Her-Surname,



First of all, feel free to call me
Ivo. Regarding your...







formality email politeness







share|improve this question




















  • 4




    Your suggestion looks good to me!
    – psmears
    Feb 18 '11 at 15:52










  • "My name is Mister Surname!" :)
    – zetetic
    Feb 18 '11 at 21:08














4












4








4


2





Let's say that somebody from a partner firm with whom I've never spoken before starts an email to me with "Dear Mr. Rossi,".



When a reply to her, I think I will then have to start with "Dear Ms. Her-Surname," to not sound disrepectful. But I would like to make this email conversation less formal next time.



Is there any better alternative to the sentence below?




Dear Ms. Her-Surname,



First of all, feel free to call me
Ivo. Regarding your...







formality email politeness







share|improve this question















Let's say that somebody from a partner firm with whom I've never spoken before starts an email to me with "Dear Mr. Rossi,".



When a reply to her, I think I will then have to start with "Dear Ms. Her-Surname," to not sound disrepectful. But I would like to make this email conversation less formal next time.



Is there any better alternative to the sentence below?




Dear Ms. Her-Surname,



First of all, feel free to call me
Ivo. Regarding your...







formality email politeness




formality email politeness






share|improve this question















share|improve this question













share|improve this question




share|improve this question








edited Feb 18 '11 at 15:46

























asked Feb 18 '11 at 15:35









Ivo Rossi

1,13692439




1,13692439








  • 4




    Your suggestion looks good to me!
    – psmears
    Feb 18 '11 at 15:52










  • "My name is Mister Surname!" :)
    – zetetic
    Feb 18 '11 at 21:08














  • 4




    Your suggestion looks good to me!
    – psmears
    Feb 18 '11 at 15:52










  • "My name is Mister Surname!" :)
    – zetetic
    Feb 18 '11 at 21:08








4




4




Your suggestion looks good to me!
– psmears
Feb 18 '11 at 15:52




Your suggestion looks good to me!
– psmears
Feb 18 '11 at 15:52












"My name is Mister Surname!" :)
– zetetic
Feb 18 '11 at 21:08




"My name is Mister Surname!" :)
– zetetic
Feb 18 '11 at 21:08










5 Answers
5






active

oldest

votes


















12















Dear Ms. Her-Surname,



First of all, feel free to call me
Ivo. Regarding your...







share|improve this answer





















  • Apparently my own suggestion is good (see comments to my question above). But if you have other suggestions, please post them.
    – Ivo Rossi
    Feb 18 '11 at 16:08






  • 6




    I think your approach is a good one. An alternative is to be less direct (but risk not getting your message across) by signing off using your first name only: "Regards, Ivo". When I see this I interpret it as an invitation to use first names.
    – Alex Trueman
    Feb 18 '11 at 22:22






  • 1




    @Alex: Your approach is the one I would use (and always try to be sensitive to). Unfortunately, many people are almost completely oblivious.
    – Marcin
    May 1 '11 at 10:05










  • @Marcin: I don't know whether people are oblivious, or just not entirely sure whether it's really an invitation. One possibility is to try the subtle approach at first, and if that doesn't work issue a direct invitation.
    – Peter Shor
    Jun 17 '11 at 16:34



















1














I think that might be about as good as you can get in English. In some other languages, there are words for that, e.g. in Spanish, the verb "tutear" has roughly this meaning (spanishdict.com translates it as "to treat with familiarity"), which invites a degree of informality, and probably implies that the speaker wants the listener(s) to call him or her by a given name or nickname. English doesn't have different conjugations for the formal and informal second person, so it makes sense that there isn't one word for this.



If I were writing this, I would write it either exactly as you did "feel free to call me...", or possibly "please call me..." if I strongly prefer to be called by something. I think there is rarely a social stigma in American English to one person inviting the other to use an informal address—and the cases in which there might be, it's the kind of thing you usually know when you see it, such as talking with the president, prime minister, head of a company, etc.






share|improve this answer

















  • 1




    Well, we have an informal second person... we just don't use it anymore. Thou art, thou hast, thou comest and goest, thou eatest and runnest.
    – MT_Head
    Jun 17 '11 at 6:51












  • You're right. When you don't use them every day, it's easy to forget about "thou" and "thee".
    – Andy
    Jun 21 '11 at 15:15






  • 1




    It's probably fair to consider "Thou" to be a super-formal usage now, rather than an informal second person, since the only instance a modern speaker would be familiar with is from divine command in that Charleton Heston movie.
    – DougM
    Mar 25 '14 at 14:12



















0














I received two phone calls recently from two non-native speakers, one from Poland and one from Pakistan.



I wrote to them “Please call me Dick”, so they called me — on the phone.



A non-native speaker myself, I have now switched to “Please call me by my first name.”






share|improve this answer























  • That’a ok, presuming they know what your first name is, Richard. Er, Rich. Er, Dick. See the problem?
    – tchrist♦
    Sep 29 '14 at 11:42



















0














Please skip the "feel free" - always. (What, exactly, is one "feeling"? And, the situation is business-to-business. Stay formal. I do not understand the near-phobia of respectful formality. And why would anyone want to become informal so quickly? Do you believe that, doing so, will give you some kind of "in" with the person? They "care" more about what you are saying, and/or who you are? No. They don't.



Why give the idea that the most important thing in the world is that you call each other by your first names. This is business.



In ALL situations, including public schools, (and to students), the formal address is the high and better choice.






share|improve this answer





















  • In answer to your question "What exactly is one 'feeling' [when one 'feels free']?" the probable answer is "unconstrained." If my understanding on this point is correct, "please feel free to do X" is logically interchangeable with "please don't feel that you under any obligation not to do X"—an expression whose meaning I find both straightforward and reasonable. Of course, expressions don't have to be meaningless to win a place among a person's pet peeves.
    – Sven Yargs
    Mar 25 at 7:52



















0














I'd go with using your prefer name in the closing: " Best Regards", Jeff. This is supposingly the most unconstrained approach..






share|improve this answer








New contributor




Ricky is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.


















  • Hi Ricky, welcome to EL&U. NB: the system has flagged your post as "low-quality because of its length and content." An answer on EL&U is expected to be authoritative, detailed, and explain why it is correct. Given your answer is basically just a personal opinion, it would be better as a comment rather than an answer; Comments are a privilege you can easily earn these points by posting good answers or questions. For further guidance, see How to Answer and take the EL&U Tour :-)
    – Chappo
    9 hours ago











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5 Answers
5






active

oldest

votes








5 Answers
5






active

oldest

votes









active

oldest

votes






active

oldest

votes









12















Dear Ms. Her-Surname,



First of all, feel free to call me
Ivo. Regarding your...







share|improve this answer





















  • Apparently my own suggestion is good (see comments to my question above). But if you have other suggestions, please post them.
    – Ivo Rossi
    Feb 18 '11 at 16:08






  • 6




    I think your approach is a good one. An alternative is to be less direct (but risk not getting your message across) by signing off using your first name only: "Regards, Ivo". When I see this I interpret it as an invitation to use first names.
    – Alex Trueman
    Feb 18 '11 at 22:22






  • 1




    @Alex: Your approach is the one I would use (and always try to be sensitive to). Unfortunately, many people are almost completely oblivious.
    – Marcin
    May 1 '11 at 10:05










  • @Marcin: I don't know whether people are oblivious, or just not entirely sure whether it's really an invitation. One possibility is to try the subtle approach at first, and if that doesn't work issue a direct invitation.
    – Peter Shor
    Jun 17 '11 at 16:34
















12















Dear Ms. Her-Surname,



First of all, feel free to call me
Ivo. Regarding your...







share|improve this answer





















  • Apparently my own suggestion is good (see comments to my question above). But if you have other suggestions, please post them.
    – Ivo Rossi
    Feb 18 '11 at 16:08






  • 6




    I think your approach is a good one. An alternative is to be less direct (but risk not getting your message across) by signing off using your first name only: "Regards, Ivo". When I see this I interpret it as an invitation to use first names.
    – Alex Trueman
    Feb 18 '11 at 22:22






  • 1




    @Alex: Your approach is the one I would use (and always try to be sensitive to). Unfortunately, many people are almost completely oblivious.
    – Marcin
    May 1 '11 at 10:05










  • @Marcin: I don't know whether people are oblivious, or just not entirely sure whether it's really an invitation. One possibility is to try the subtle approach at first, and if that doesn't work issue a direct invitation.
    – Peter Shor
    Jun 17 '11 at 16:34














12












12








12







Dear Ms. Her-Surname,



First of all, feel free to call me
Ivo. Regarding your...







share|improve this answer













Dear Ms. Her-Surname,



First of all, feel free to call me
Ivo. Regarding your...








share|improve this answer












share|improve this answer



share|improve this answer










answered Feb 18 '11 at 16:07









Ivo Rossi

1,13692439




1,13692439












  • Apparently my own suggestion is good (see comments to my question above). But if you have other suggestions, please post them.
    – Ivo Rossi
    Feb 18 '11 at 16:08






  • 6




    I think your approach is a good one. An alternative is to be less direct (but risk not getting your message across) by signing off using your first name only: "Regards, Ivo". When I see this I interpret it as an invitation to use first names.
    – Alex Trueman
    Feb 18 '11 at 22:22






  • 1




    @Alex: Your approach is the one I would use (and always try to be sensitive to). Unfortunately, many people are almost completely oblivious.
    – Marcin
    May 1 '11 at 10:05










  • @Marcin: I don't know whether people are oblivious, or just not entirely sure whether it's really an invitation. One possibility is to try the subtle approach at first, and if that doesn't work issue a direct invitation.
    – Peter Shor
    Jun 17 '11 at 16:34


















  • Apparently my own suggestion is good (see comments to my question above). But if you have other suggestions, please post them.
    – Ivo Rossi
    Feb 18 '11 at 16:08






  • 6




    I think your approach is a good one. An alternative is to be less direct (but risk not getting your message across) by signing off using your first name only: "Regards, Ivo". When I see this I interpret it as an invitation to use first names.
    – Alex Trueman
    Feb 18 '11 at 22:22






  • 1




    @Alex: Your approach is the one I would use (and always try to be sensitive to). Unfortunately, many people are almost completely oblivious.
    – Marcin
    May 1 '11 at 10:05










  • @Marcin: I don't know whether people are oblivious, or just not entirely sure whether it's really an invitation. One possibility is to try the subtle approach at first, and if that doesn't work issue a direct invitation.
    – Peter Shor
    Jun 17 '11 at 16:34
















Apparently my own suggestion is good (see comments to my question above). But if you have other suggestions, please post them.
– Ivo Rossi
Feb 18 '11 at 16:08




Apparently my own suggestion is good (see comments to my question above). But if you have other suggestions, please post them.
– Ivo Rossi
Feb 18 '11 at 16:08




6




6




I think your approach is a good one. An alternative is to be less direct (but risk not getting your message across) by signing off using your first name only: "Regards, Ivo". When I see this I interpret it as an invitation to use first names.
– Alex Trueman
Feb 18 '11 at 22:22




I think your approach is a good one. An alternative is to be less direct (but risk not getting your message across) by signing off using your first name only: "Regards, Ivo". When I see this I interpret it as an invitation to use first names.
– Alex Trueman
Feb 18 '11 at 22:22




1




1




@Alex: Your approach is the one I would use (and always try to be sensitive to). Unfortunately, many people are almost completely oblivious.
– Marcin
May 1 '11 at 10:05




@Alex: Your approach is the one I would use (and always try to be sensitive to). Unfortunately, many people are almost completely oblivious.
– Marcin
May 1 '11 at 10:05












@Marcin: I don't know whether people are oblivious, or just not entirely sure whether it's really an invitation. One possibility is to try the subtle approach at first, and if that doesn't work issue a direct invitation.
– Peter Shor
Jun 17 '11 at 16:34




@Marcin: I don't know whether people are oblivious, or just not entirely sure whether it's really an invitation. One possibility is to try the subtle approach at first, and if that doesn't work issue a direct invitation.
– Peter Shor
Jun 17 '11 at 16:34













1














I think that might be about as good as you can get in English. In some other languages, there are words for that, e.g. in Spanish, the verb "tutear" has roughly this meaning (spanishdict.com translates it as "to treat with familiarity"), which invites a degree of informality, and probably implies that the speaker wants the listener(s) to call him or her by a given name or nickname. English doesn't have different conjugations for the formal and informal second person, so it makes sense that there isn't one word for this.



If I were writing this, I would write it either exactly as you did "feel free to call me...", or possibly "please call me..." if I strongly prefer to be called by something. I think there is rarely a social stigma in American English to one person inviting the other to use an informal address—and the cases in which there might be, it's the kind of thing you usually know when you see it, such as talking with the president, prime minister, head of a company, etc.






share|improve this answer

















  • 1




    Well, we have an informal second person... we just don't use it anymore. Thou art, thou hast, thou comest and goest, thou eatest and runnest.
    – MT_Head
    Jun 17 '11 at 6:51












  • You're right. When you don't use them every day, it's easy to forget about "thou" and "thee".
    – Andy
    Jun 21 '11 at 15:15






  • 1




    It's probably fair to consider "Thou" to be a super-formal usage now, rather than an informal second person, since the only instance a modern speaker would be familiar with is from divine command in that Charleton Heston movie.
    – DougM
    Mar 25 '14 at 14:12
















1














I think that might be about as good as you can get in English. In some other languages, there are words for that, e.g. in Spanish, the verb "tutear" has roughly this meaning (spanishdict.com translates it as "to treat with familiarity"), which invites a degree of informality, and probably implies that the speaker wants the listener(s) to call him or her by a given name or nickname. English doesn't have different conjugations for the formal and informal second person, so it makes sense that there isn't one word for this.



If I were writing this, I would write it either exactly as you did "feel free to call me...", or possibly "please call me..." if I strongly prefer to be called by something. I think there is rarely a social stigma in American English to one person inviting the other to use an informal address—and the cases in which there might be, it's the kind of thing you usually know when you see it, such as talking with the president, prime minister, head of a company, etc.






share|improve this answer

















  • 1




    Well, we have an informal second person... we just don't use it anymore. Thou art, thou hast, thou comest and goest, thou eatest and runnest.
    – MT_Head
    Jun 17 '11 at 6:51












  • You're right. When you don't use them every day, it's easy to forget about "thou" and "thee".
    – Andy
    Jun 21 '11 at 15:15






  • 1




    It's probably fair to consider "Thou" to be a super-formal usage now, rather than an informal second person, since the only instance a modern speaker would be familiar with is from divine command in that Charleton Heston movie.
    – DougM
    Mar 25 '14 at 14:12














1












1








1






I think that might be about as good as you can get in English. In some other languages, there are words for that, e.g. in Spanish, the verb "tutear" has roughly this meaning (spanishdict.com translates it as "to treat with familiarity"), which invites a degree of informality, and probably implies that the speaker wants the listener(s) to call him or her by a given name or nickname. English doesn't have different conjugations for the formal and informal second person, so it makes sense that there isn't one word for this.



If I were writing this, I would write it either exactly as you did "feel free to call me...", or possibly "please call me..." if I strongly prefer to be called by something. I think there is rarely a social stigma in American English to one person inviting the other to use an informal address—and the cases in which there might be, it's the kind of thing you usually know when you see it, such as talking with the president, prime minister, head of a company, etc.






share|improve this answer












I think that might be about as good as you can get in English. In some other languages, there are words for that, e.g. in Spanish, the verb "tutear" has roughly this meaning (spanishdict.com translates it as "to treat with familiarity"), which invites a degree of informality, and probably implies that the speaker wants the listener(s) to call him or her by a given name or nickname. English doesn't have different conjugations for the formal and informal second person, so it makes sense that there isn't one word for this.



If I were writing this, I would write it either exactly as you did "feel free to call me...", or possibly "please call me..." if I strongly prefer to be called by something. I think there is rarely a social stigma in American English to one person inviting the other to use an informal address—and the cases in which there might be, it's the kind of thing you usually know when you see it, such as talking with the president, prime minister, head of a company, etc.







share|improve this answer












share|improve this answer



share|improve this answer










answered Feb 18 '11 at 16:23









Andy

692612




692612








  • 1




    Well, we have an informal second person... we just don't use it anymore. Thou art, thou hast, thou comest and goest, thou eatest and runnest.
    – MT_Head
    Jun 17 '11 at 6:51












  • You're right. When you don't use them every day, it's easy to forget about "thou" and "thee".
    – Andy
    Jun 21 '11 at 15:15






  • 1




    It's probably fair to consider "Thou" to be a super-formal usage now, rather than an informal second person, since the only instance a modern speaker would be familiar with is from divine command in that Charleton Heston movie.
    – DougM
    Mar 25 '14 at 14:12














  • 1




    Well, we have an informal second person... we just don't use it anymore. Thou art, thou hast, thou comest and goest, thou eatest and runnest.
    – MT_Head
    Jun 17 '11 at 6:51












  • You're right. When you don't use them every day, it's easy to forget about "thou" and "thee".
    – Andy
    Jun 21 '11 at 15:15






  • 1




    It's probably fair to consider "Thou" to be a super-formal usage now, rather than an informal second person, since the only instance a modern speaker would be familiar with is from divine command in that Charleton Heston movie.
    – DougM
    Mar 25 '14 at 14:12








1




1




Well, we have an informal second person... we just don't use it anymore. Thou art, thou hast, thou comest and goest, thou eatest and runnest.
– MT_Head
Jun 17 '11 at 6:51






Well, we have an informal second person... we just don't use it anymore. Thou art, thou hast, thou comest and goest, thou eatest and runnest.
– MT_Head
Jun 17 '11 at 6:51














You're right. When you don't use them every day, it's easy to forget about "thou" and "thee".
– Andy
Jun 21 '11 at 15:15




You're right. When you don't use them every day, it's easy to forget about "thou" and "thee".
– Andy
Jun 21 '11 at 15:15




1




1




It's probably fair to consider "Thou" to be a super-formal usage now, rather than an informal second person, since the only instance a modern speaker would be familiar with is from divine command in that Charleton Heston movie.
– DougM
Mar 25 '14 at 14:12




It's probably fair to consider "Thou" to be a super-formal usage now, rather than an informal second person, since the only instance a modern speaker would be familiar with is from divine command in that Charleton Heston movie.
– DougM
Mar 25 '14 at 14:12











0














I received two phone calls recently from two non-native speakers, one from Poland and one from Pakistan.



I wrote to them “Please call me Dick”, so they called me — on the phone.



A non-native speaker myself, I have now switched to “Please call me by my first name.”






share|improve this answer























  • That’a ok, presuming they know what your first name is, Richard. Er, Rich. Er, Dick. See the problem?
    – tchrist♦
    Sep 29 '14 at 11:42
















0














I received two phone calls recently from two non-native speakers, one from Poland and one from Pakistan.



I wrote to them “Please call me Dick”, so they called me — on the phone.



A non-native speaker myself, I have now switched to “Please call me by my first name.”






share|improve this answer























  • That’a ok, presuming they know what your first name is, Richard. Er, Rich. Er, Dick. See the problem?
    – tchrist♦
    Sep 29 '14 at 11:42














0












0








0






I received two phone calls recently from two non-native speakers, one from Poland and one from Pakistan.



I wrote to them “Please call me Dick”, so they called me — on the phone.



A non-native speaker myself, I have now switched to “Please call me by my first name.”






share|improve this answer














I received two phone calls recently from two non-native speakers, one from Poland and one from Pakistan.



I wrote to them “Please call me Dick”, so they called me — on the phone.



A non-native speaker myself, I have now switched to “Please call me by my first name.”







share|improve this answer














share|improve this answer



share|improve this answer








edited Sep 29 '14 at 11:41









tchrist♦

108k28290463




108k28290463










answered Sep 29 '14 at 10:26









Dick

1




1












  • That’a ok, presuming they know what your first name is, Richard. Er, Rich. Er, Dick. See the problem?
    – tchrist♦
    Sep 29 '14 at 11:42


















  • That’a ok, presuming they know what your first name is, Richard. Er, Rich. Er, Dick. See the problem?
    – tchrist♦
    Sep 29 '14 at 11:42
















That’a ok, presuming they know what your first name is, Richard. Er, Rich. Er, Dick. See the problem?
– tchrist♦
Sep 29 '14 at 11:42




That’a ok, presuming they know what your first name is, Richard. Er, Rich. Er, Dick. See the problem?
– tchrist♦
Sep 29 '14 at 11:42











0














Please skip the "feel free" - always. (What, exactly, is one "feeling"? And, the situation is business-to-business. Stay formal. I do not understand the near-phobia of respectful formality. And why would anyone want to become informal so quickly? Do you believe that, doing so, will give you some kind of "in" with the person? They "care" more about what you are saying, and/or who you are? No. They don't.



Why give the idea that the most important thing in the world is that you call each other by your first names. This is business.



In ALL situations, including public schools, (and to students), the formal address is the high and better choice.






share|improve this answer





















  • In answer to your question "What exactly is one 'feeling' [when one 'feels free']?" the probable answer is "unconstrained." If my understanding on this point is correct, "please feel free to do X" is logically interchangeable with "please don't feel that you under any obligation not to do X"—an expression whose meaning I find both straightforward and reasonable. Of course, expressions don't have to be meaningless to win a place among a person's pet peeves.
    – Sven Yargs
    Mar 25 at 7:52
















0














Please skip the "feel free" - always. (What, exactly, is one "feeling"? And, the situation is business-to-business. Stay formal. I do not understand the near-phobia of respectful formality. And why would anyone want to become informal so quickly? Do you believe that, doing so, will give you some kind of "in" with the person? They "care" more about what you are saying, and/or who you are? No. They don't.



Why give the idea that the most important thing in the world is that you call each other by your first names. This is business.



In ALL situations, including public schools, (and to students), the formal address is the high and better choice.






share|improve this answer





















  • In answer to your question "What exactly is one 'feeling' [when one 'feels free']?" the probable answer is "unconstrained." If my understanding on this point is correct, "please feel free to do X" is logically interchangeable with "please don't feel that you under any obligation not to do X"—an expression whose meaning I find both straightforward and reasonable. Of course, expressions don't have to be meaningless to win a place among a person's pet peeves.
    – Sven Yargs
    Mar 25 at 7:52














0












0








0






Please skip the "feel free" - always. (What, exactly, is one "feeling"? And, the situation is business-to-business. Stay formal. I do not understand the near-phobia of respectful formality. And why would anyone want to become informal so quickly? Do you believe that, doing so, will give you some kind of "in" with the person? They "care" more about what you are saying, and/or who you are? No. They don't.



Why give the idea that the most important thing in the world is that you call each other by your first names. This is business.



In ALL situations, including public schools, (and to students), the formal address is the high and better choice.






share|improve this answer












Please skip the "feel free" - always. (What, exactly, is one "feeling"? And, the situation is business-to-business. Stay formal. I do not understand the near-phobia of respectful formality. And why would anyone want to become informal so quickly? Do you believe that, doing so, will give you some kind of "in" with the person? They "care" more about what you are saying, and/or who you are? No. They don't.



Why give the idea that the most important thing in the world is that you call each other by your first names. This is business.



In ALL situations, including public schools, (and to students), the formal address is the high and better choice.







share|improve this answer












share|improve this answer



share|improve this answer










answered Mar 25 at 4:52









J. Doe

11




11












  • In answer to your question "What exactly is one 'feeling' [when one 'feels free']?" the probable answer is "unconstrained." If my understanding on this point is correct, "please feel free to do X" is logically interchangeable with "please don't feel that you under any obligation not to do X"—an expression whose meaning I find both straightforward and reasonable. Of course, expressions don't have to be meaningless to win a place among a person's pet peeves.
    – Sven Yargs
    Mar 25 at 7:52


















  • In answer to your question "What exactly is one 'feeling' [when one 'feels free']?" the probable answer is "unconstrained." If my understanding on this point is correct, "please feel free to do X" is logically interchangeable with "please don't feel that you under any obligation not to do X"—an expression whose meaning I find both straightforward and reasonable. Of course, expressions don't have to be meaningless to win a place among a person's pet peeves.
    – Sven Yargs
    Mar 25 at 7:52
















In answer to your question "What exactly is one 'feeling' [when one 'feels free']?" the probable answer is "unconstrained." If my understanding on this point is correct, "please feel free to do X" is logically interchangeable with "please don't feel that you under any obligation not to do X"—an expression whose meaning I find both straightforward and reasonable. Of course, expressions don't have to be meaningless to win a place among a person's pet peeves.
– Sven Yargs
Mar 25 at 7:52




In answer to your question "What exactly is one 'feeling' [when one 'feels free']?" the probable answer is "unconstrained." If my understanding on this point is correct, "please feel free to do X" is logically interchangeable with "please don't feel that you under any obligation not to do X"—an expression whose meaning I find both straightforward and reasonable. Of course, expressions don't have to be meaningless to win a place among a person's pet peeves.
– Sven Yargs
Mar 25 at 7:52











0














I'd go with using your prefer name in the closing: " Best Regards", Jeff. This is supposingly the most unconstrained approach..






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  • Hi Ricky, welcome to EL&U. NB: the system has flagged your post as "low-quality because of its length and content." An answer on EL&U is expected to be authoritative, detailed, and explain why it is correct. Given your answer is basically just a personal opinion, it would be better as a comment rather than an answer; Comments are a privilege you can easily earn these points by posting good answers or questions. For further guidance, see How to Answer and take the EL&U Tour :-)
    – Chappo
    9 hours ago
















0














I'd go with using your prefer name in the closing: " Best Regards", Jeff. This is supposingly the most unconstrained approach..






share|improve this answer








New contributor




Ricky is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.


















  • Hi Ricky, welcome to EL&U. NB: the system has flagged your post as "low-quality because of its length and content." An answer on EL&U is expected to be authoritative, detailed, and explain why it is correct. Given your answer is basically just a personal opinion, it would be better as a comment rather than an answer; Comments are a privilege you can easily earn these points by posting good answers or questions. For further guidance, see How to Answer and take the EL&U Tour :-)
    – Chappo
    9 hours ago














0












0








0






I'd go with using your prefer name in the closing: " Best Regards", Jeff. This is supposingly the most unconstrained approach..






share|improve this answer








New contributor




Ricky is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.









I'd go with using your prefer name in the closing: " Best Regards", Jeff. This is supposingly the most unconstrained approach..







share|improve this answer








New contributor




Ricky is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.









share|improve this answer



share|improve this answer






New contributor




Ricky is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.









answered 14 hours ago









Ricky

1




1




New contributor




Ricky is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.





New contributor





Ricky is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.






Ricky is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.












  • Hi Ricky, welcome to EL&U. NB: the system has flagged your post as "low-quality because of its length and content." An answer on EL&U is expected to be authoritative, detailed, and explain why it is correct. Given your answer is basically just a personal opinion, it would be better as a comment rather than an answer; Comments are a privilege you can easily earn these points by posting good answers or questions. For further guidance, see How to Answer and take the EL&U Tour :-)
    – Chappo
    9 hours ago


















  • Hi Ricky, welcome to EL&U. NB: the system has flagged your post as "low-quality because of its length and content." An answer on EL&U is expected to be authoritative, detailed, and explain why it is correct. Given your answer is basically just a personal opinion, it would be better as a comment rather than an answer; Comments are a privilege you can easily earn these points by posting good answers or questions. For further guidance, see How to Answer and take the EL&U Tour :-)
    – Chappo
    9 hours ago
















Hi Ricky, welcome to EL&U. NB: the system has flagged your post as "low-quality because of its length and content." An answer on EL&U is expected to be authoritative, detailed, and explain why it is correct. Given your answer is basically just a personal opinion, it would be better as a comment rather than an answer; Comments are a privilege you can easily earn these points by posting good answers or questions. For further guidance, see How to Answer and take the EL&U Tour :-)
– Chappo
9 hours ago




Hi Ricky, welcome to EL&U. NB: the system has flagged your post as "low-quality because of its length and content." An answer on EL&U is expected to be authoritative, detailed, and explain why it is correct. Given your answer is basically just a personal opinion, it would be better as a comment rather than an answer; Comments are a privilege you can easily earn these points by posting good answers or questions. For further guidance, see How to Answer and take the EL&U Tour :-)
– Chappo
9 hours ago


















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