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5 Examples of the Impersonal

John Spacey, November 26, 2022

Impersonal is the exclusion of individual considerations. This is commonly applied to communication, services and human interactions that exclude any consideration of you as a unique individual. The following are illustrative examples.

Impersonal Service

Impersonal service such as a restaurant where you order from your phone without any personal attention from staff.

Impersonal Criticism

Criticism that doesn't target a person but rather a situation, result or state. For example, "it doesn't work."

Impersonal Experiences

Experiences where you do not feel that you are treated as an individual. For example, a hotel that herds guests through check in as quickly as possible without any personal attention such as explaining things person to person.

Impersonal Communication

Communication that sticks to the facts without recognizing that there are people involved. For example, "the flight has been delayed" as opposed to the more personal "I'm sorry your flight has been delayed."

Commoditization of Labor

Employers that view workers as indistinguishable commodities. For example, "we need 50 developers" as opposed to "we need 15 talented new team members."