😒 Classism

Try to imagine a reader lower in hierarchy or socio-economic level than yourself: How would you feel when re-reading your own words?

For many people, this formulation implicitly communicates a feeling of condescension. It is associated with a power imbalance and can be perceived as "a top down" mindset. It may or may not also express a sense of social class difference. In short, readers unconsciously realize that the text is not at their eye level. And thus excludes them from the conversation. 

What can you do?

In many situations, we are not aware of our own position and privilege that comes with it. We might have privilege due to our socio-economic background (education was always paid for, the parents never had to worry at the end of the month) or due to our position in a company (faster access to information, being taken more seriously due to seniority). These privileges do influence how we formulate our sentences. Daniel Kahnemann, one of the founders of behavioral economics, once realized that he inadvertently uses different tone of voice in emails when he writes to other professors or to his assistant. The first was at eye level while the second was almost bossy.

When writing, try to be aware of that "classism" bias that happens to all of us. Ask yourself: "Would I write it the same way with an addressee that has the same position as I?"