Theme

NoHello

Skip the "hi" and silence. Put your ask and the minimal context in the first message. Faster replies, less back-and-forth.

📱 Platform-Specific Guides

👥
Microsoft Teams
#
Slack
🎮
Discord
💬
WhatsApp
✈️
Telegram
@
Email

Fewer round trips

One complete message beats three pings. Ask + context + link in a single note saves time for both sides.

Clear & searchable

Requests with details are easier to answer now—and to find later in chat history or tickets.

Respects focus

People triage. Give them enough info to reply when they're free, without "you there?" follow-ups.

Quick start

  • Ask: what you need, by when.
  • Context: system, file, error, or link.
  • Flex: say no rush if it can wait, or give a real deadline.

Template: Hey <name> — <ask>. Context: <one-liner>. Link: <url>. When: <deadline or "no rush">.

Short etiquette

  • Friendly is good—just put greeting + ask in the same message.
  • Share artifacts: PRs, issues, screenshots, error text.
  • Be honest about urgency. Not everything is "ASAP".

Examples

Before "hi" … "you around?"
After "Hey Sam — can you review PR #842 for the auth header? Retry logic might double-send. No rush before Tue EOD."
Good "Morning! Deploy fails with ERR_HTTP_HEADERS_SENT. Steps in issue #913. Any hints welcome."

When "hello first" is OK

Human moments matter. If it's sensitive or you haven't chatted in a while, a warm opener + your request in the same message is perfect:

"Hey Maya — hope you're well! Could you sign the vendor form? Link inside; no rush this week."

Do

  • Combine greeting + request.
  • Paste the error/log or a link.
  • Give a timeline ("today", "tomorrow", "no rush").

Don't

  • Send "hi" and wait.
  • Ping repeatedly without details.
  • Spray @here/@channel for 1-to-1 questions.

Isn't this rude?

No. It's complete. You can be warm and still get to the point.

What about back-and-forth?

Start with what you know and a concrete question. If it needs a call, propose one with an agenda.

Does this replace meetings?

No, it just makes chat useful. Use meetings for complex or high-bandwidth topics.

Spread the word

Help others communicate more effectively by sharing the NoHello practice.

#nohello