“We are thrilled… are we though?”

I am not thrilled to make this post.

(Please read with a smile—this is tongue‑in‑cheek, but with a serious undertone 😉)

Somewhere along the line, our workplace feeds – Viva Engage, Yammer, Teams posts that sneak in like polite chaos – have turned into a parallel universe where everyone is absolutely buzzing… all the time.

You’ve seen it. You’ve felt it. You’ve probably written it (don’t worry, we’re all complicit).

“We are thrilled to announce…”
“We are thrilled to welcome…”
“We are thrilled to collaborate…”
“We are… deeply, profoundly, eternally thrilled…”

At this point, I’m not sure if we’re sharing updates or hosting a never-ending surprise party where nobody actually signed the card.

It’s like AI discovered adjectives and said, “Right. We’re going to rinse this one word into oblivion.”

And look – I get it. These tools are helpful. Efficient. Slick. They take the pain out of writing that “just one more quick post” after your fifth meeting about something that could have been an email… that could have been nothing.

But here’s where it gets interesting.

The Cappuccino Club reality check

In the real world – the one where people are juggling deadlines, figuring out how to grow their careers, dealing with tricky stakeholders, or just trying to get through a Tuesday without reopening the same PowerPoint 17 times – this kind of language lands… flat.

Not because people are cynical.

Because people are busy. And more importantly, they can smell inauthenticity a mile off.

When everything is “thrilling,” nothing is.

When every announcement reads like it’s been run through the same AI enthusiasm machine, it stops feeling like communication and starts feeling like… noise.

A note to new joiners

If you’re early in your career, here’s a small but powerful edge:

You don’t need to sound like everyone else to be taken seriously.
You definitely don’t need to sound like a corporate mascot on espresso.

In fact, the opposite works better.

Try this instead:

• Say what actually matters.
• Use words you’d say out loud.
• Drop the hype when it doesn’t add anything.

Because the people you’re writing for? They’re dealing with real work, real pressure, real expectations. They don’t need “thrilled.” They need clarity.

And ironically, being more grounded often makes you stand out more.

A radical suggestion

Next time you’re about to hit “Post,” try one of these:

• “We’re working on…”
• “We’ve launched…”
• “Here’s what changed…”
• Or if you’re feeling particularly rebellious: no adjective at all.

Just… the thing.

I know. Bold.

Final sip

This isn’t about banning enthusiasm. It’s about earning it.

Because when something actually is exciting – and that does happen – you don’t need to tell people you’re thrilled.

They’ll feel it.

(And yes… of course I had AI help me write this. I’m not thrilled about it.)