Guidelines for the use of emojis are drawn up in working life, because ambiguous symbols are easily misunderstood.
– Many messages would seem much more matter-of-fact without that emoji, but it is still pushed everywhere. I interpret it as very awkward and I don’t really know how to react to it.
If Mäenpää received the emoji in question from a colleague, for example, in connection with a request or a joke, he would not be sure what or who the emoji’s troubled laugh was referring to.
According to Mäenpää, the differences between generations can be seen in the use of emojis. He says that older generations use a lot of traditional emojis, such as the smiley, thumbs up or poop emoji.
– My friends would use a smiley or a thumbs up emoji sarcastically, and no one would use a poop emoji. It reminds me of Facebook moms.
People interpret emojis in different ways, and their use can cause misunderstandings within the work community.
Typically, middle-aged people take emojis literally.
There are instructions on emojis at workplaces
– Apparently, the messages had previously been unintentionally interpreted as rude, because there were no emojis in them.
Järventie started with a smiley face and later also adopted a thumb. He has heard that colleagues in their twenties may find these emojis embarrassing, but he believes that young people will still understand that his messages are benign.
– I can’t know all the meanings when I’m not twenty.
Järventie’s employer has drawn up instructions on the use of emojis. With customers, we stick to very traditional and neutral emojis, such as flowers, sunglasses and smiles.
The poo emoji and crying emoji are categorically prohibited, and the heart is not allowed to be used in the German market.
Try in the game whether you use emojis like zoomer or millennial
In the game below, you can test whether you belong to the Zoomer or Millennial generation based on your use of emojis.
*The source of the test is the internet dictionary* *Dictionary.com**.*
*You can discuss the topic on 25.10. until 11 p.m.*